Our second chance is called Amphibia - Road to Newtopia (Season 2)

by TheRealTrunko

Two months have passed ever since the six humans ended up trapped in Amphibia, and they are now ready to set on a new journey out of the Valley in search of a way to return home. On their journey, they will face old and new enemies, uncover hidden secrets and conspiracies, make new friends and allies and experience shocking revelations.

31. Burning Sky

Burning Sky

---

Where were you?

Three words, one sentence, a simple question that would yet become one of the most recurring ones in Newtopia and the rest of Amphibia.

Where were you, when the humans arrived in our city?

In the years that would follow, countless Amphibians would ask that question to each other, wondering what they had been doing when their lives changed forever.

Where were you, when the Order launched its attack?

Frogs, Toads, Newts and Axolotls, all would share their stories and tell their own point of view, how they had seen their sense of security being broken, again and again.

Where were you, when the war started?

---

"You know, when I found out my powers gave me the ability to shoot lighting out of my fingers, I figured that I would've used it in a fight, perhaps something cool, not this!" Jacob lamented, the yellow sparkle of electricity escaping from his fingers and zapping onto the once-inert hydraulic system, allowing for its electric-powered components to work once again. "Remind me, why do I have to do this?"

"Because I needed to get washed," Sasha's voice came from within the shower, the warm water falling onto her skin while a small room divider, provided by Felicia, allowed her to bathe without risk of Jacob seeing her. "And as of this moment, your Calamity Powers are the only source of energy that can replace electricity."

"Do you realize that Marcy had thought of several projects already to do that? Either by going back to the Valley and getting more zapapedes, or that wind turbine project of hers?" The boy grunted, clearly unhappy with his current chore. "You needed only to wait a few more days! And it's not like you've been without chances to wash yourself before."

"Stop whining, you big baby! If it was Marcy who ask you, I bet you'd jumped at the chance." Sasha snickered, too busy enjoying the gentle touch of water on her skin.

Jacob kept grumbling while doing his electrical job, neither affirming nor denying Sasha's claim. But when his bored eyes gazed upon the toilet, a wicked idea entered his head. And before his better judgment could stop him, he reached over and hit the flush, running out of the bathroom as the sound of Sasha's scream filled the entire castle.

(…)

"Tweet-tweet!

"Biz! Zim zum-zum!"

"Hey, hey, calm down!" Amelia shouted, putting herself between Akitsu and Joe Sparrow, the large bird flapping his wings as the dragonfly put herself between him and Bessie, Marcy and the Plantars coming to her help.

"Joe Sparrow!" The dark-haired girl walked to the bird, her face a mix of anger and embarrassment. "Leave the snail alone!"

"All okay, Bess?" Anne asked the family snail, the wise gastropod replying with a few chirps, her face blushing. "Okay, that's… not something I was expecting to see."

"Zum-zum-zum!" Akitsu buzzed again, glaring at Joe with fury, determined to keep the feathered Don Juan away from Bessie.

"Alright girly, you can stop now, we control the situation!" Her friend and partner exclaimed, before turning to face Marcy. "And you, Mars, you should better teach your sparrow to stay within his bonds! It's the third time already he's tried to flirt with Bessie. And you know Akitsu is not happy when someone tries to seduce her adoptive big sister."

"Brin-brin!"

"Meep."

"Tweet-tweet-tweet!"

"Hey, she's a snail, you're a bird!" Amelia challenged, while Marcy and Anne respectively held on Joe Sparrow and Bessie. "By the law of biology, even if she liked you, you're not compatible!"

Joe didn't reply, yet he gave the human girl a glance, like he was thinking 'are you sure about that?'"

(…)

"Ok, Frobo!" Polly said, looking at the large frog-shaped robot. "Repeat after me: Plantar Family."

"Plantar. Family."

"Yes, that's what you're part of now!" The tadpole nodded. "Now, say: sister."

"Sister."

"That's good! And now," Polly's lips twitched in an eager smirk, "let's try something different. Violence!"

"Violence."

"Combat!"

"Combat."

"War!"

(…)

"Maddie, are you ok?" Ivy murmured as she and Sprig peeked inside the lab room that Maddie and Marcy shared for spellwork. "We just wanted to be sure that everything's alright."

"Yeah. Ever since you and the others returned from Dawnblood island you've locked yourself in here." Sprig nodded, marching inside and approaching his longtime friend (and since recently, co-girlfriend). "Did something happen? Can we try to make you feel better?"

"No, there's nothing you can do." Maddie shushed, trying to stay concentrated on her current work. "Just… leave me alone."

"Frog no, we are not doing that!" Ivy replied. "I know what you're doing: you have something inside that's hurting you, but rather than opening up and venting it, you're focusing on your spell-making and waiting for it to hurt! And that's what you always do when you're angry or sad about something!"

"I'm not angry!" Maddie hissed, the tone of her voice and the emotions resonating through it a clear sign she was lying. "I just-just…"

"Is it about what you and Marcy found out while you were there?" Sprig questioned. "About Aiden?"

Maddie shrugged, her right hand clenching into a fist, her usual emotionless facade crumbling and breaking down as her own mind was unable to withstand the rush of sentiments going through her body. Yet, as she felt Sprig and Ivys' hands reaching for her shoulder, she let out a small gasp as all the frustration, anger and turmoil she had tried to dig deep inside her mind were released, all at once.

"He… he knew me." The young mage frog explained. "He talked about my dad, and my sisters, he said he visited them! When that happened, what had he done to them? Are they still alive, perhaps in chains like the ones they took from Ribbitvale? Or they're dead, and I am here, with no way to know for sure!"

"And you actually believe that?" Sprig raised an eyebrow. "Maddie, your dad knows how to defend himself, we all saw him sprang into action back when the Toads attacked Wartwood. And if your sisters are like Polly, I think there is no way anyone, even Aiden, could get close to them, let alone touch them!"

"Yes!" Ivy nodded. "I bet he only said that because he knew there was no way for you to confirm his words! To instill doubt in your mind so it would torture you! That would fit his character, doesn't it? To try and hurt us as much as he can?"

"He surely did that a lot by infiltrating the Order and playing them as pawns so they could spread destruction for himself." Maddie grunted, thinking about the possibility. "I've never, never wanted to use my magic on someone that badly before."

(…)

"To tell the truth, I'm surprised to receive your invitation… today." Bella said, trying to hide her blush, looking at her 'date' as they sat down in a small inn, several other clients already sitting down at the tables around them, a few waitresses marching in and out and carrying many nice, flavored dishes. "I thought you'd have left, by now."

"Oh, my family sure did." Lizentine replied. "But apparently my aunt was so 'impressed' that I've managed to score 'a nice girlfriend of some respectable family'," the male newt spoke with a falsetto voice and a pinky left high in the air, to which his guest could only try (and failed) to hold a snort. As Bella was now coughing, trying to pass her unladylike attitude as just that, he continued, "That she told me to stay here for the advisable future and keep the 'courting going'."

"Look, I told you, I'm sorry-"

"Why should you feel sorry?" Lizentine chuckled, "they left, and I'm still here, free to live without their overbearing personalities telling me what to do every single day. And since they also left me quite the consistent dowry to finance my dates, why not use them for their intended purpose?"

"I told you I'd play the part, not that you'd have to bring me on an actual date!" The former bellhop replied, still looking around to make sure no one else heard her. "What if this ends up hurting your chances of finding someone you actually love in the future?"

"Believe me, there is little to no risk for that." Lizentine nodded, as Bella was left puzzled why he kept looking at her…

(…)

"Five months?!"

"At least." Admiral Blueocean nodded, looking down on the report the shipyard workers had given to him, James standing in front of his desk. "Whatever attacked the Green Lady while you were on the island apparently managed to pierce its hull and almost cut it apart from impetus alone. From what its captain had been able to tell, they were lucky they were able to return to harbor with what emergency repairs they could do."

"Sir, if that's the case, please allow me to apologize for having caused such damage to the fleet. As a member-"

"Stop blaming yourself, lad." The Admiral countered. "We're the Navy; we're expected to face things like this. Besides, I think I should go on and check this with my own eyes. Perhaps, with some luck we could have the Green Lady ready to return to duty in less time than they requested."

"Then, at least sir, will you allow me to assist you with that? You've got a full schedule; you don't need even more work to focus on."

"Look who's talking!" The old newt replied, looking at the human teen with eyes full of kindness and pride. "I heard some rumors going around, you've basically doing double, triple shifts between here, the university and your friends. Tell me, lad, when was the last time you took a good night of sleep? Or even time to wash yourself?" He added with a small sniff.

"I-I had all the sleep I needed sir. Besides, with the threat hanging upon the city, we can't afford to waste time."

"The threat is looming upon everyone, yet your friends are still finding the time to rest and not overwork themselves. Why are you different from them? Are you perhaps the only one among them who can go forever without stop?"

"No, sir, of course not. But… so far, I am the only one among us who had not unlocked his powers yet…"

(…)

And so everyone's life kept going the way it usually did, the six humans, their friends and families all finding something for themselves to do on that morning. From Hop Pop and Felicia attending a small-time gala hosted by his friend Sal, to Ivy and Sprig pulling an 'intervention' on Maddie's behalf, to Jacob running around the hall of the castle with a manic giggle, as he struggled to escape the irked rage of Sasha Waybright.

From the soldiers of the Army and the Night Guard, who were patrolling the city and surveying the walls. To the people in the city going on with their jobs, their studies or whatever things they had to do.

No one noticed it, until it was too late.

From the stories and testimonies of those who survived, it started with a huge explosion at the very center of the city itself, reminiscent of the attack the Order had pulled not too long before. Then, a dozen more explosions happened all over the city, the civilians screaming and rushing to safety while the Army and the Night Guard, alarmed by the various blasts, rushed out to secure the city and defend it.

A few people, who happened to look up at the right moment, would later claim they had seen large elliptical cylinders fall from the sky at great speed, striking buildings from above, before setting off in loud bangs of flame, incinerating anything (and anyone) who had the misfortune to be too close to their intended targets.

Leaving, in their stead, only the crumbled ruins that were once some of the biggest and most luxurious buildings of the capital, and tall columns of smoke rising toward the sky. Seeing such columns, many citizens felt their hearts become heavy, the peace and serenity that had accompanied them up to that moment quickly vanishing, as shock and terror took their place.

Indeed, all of them clearly remembered the devastation and pain that the Order's attack had caused to the city, the lives that had been cut short, and the trauma that this would entail for an entire generation.

For centuries and centuries, no enemy had ever breached the walls of Newtopia, allowing the population to live peacefully, confident that never would anyone dare to attack the capital, believing this to be impossible.

And now, for the third time in less than a month, the impossible has happened once again.

---

"Your majesty!" Marcy shouted as she threw herself inside the throne room, slamming the door so hard the Royal Guards standing on the entrance barely had the time to move out of the way. Behind her, Anne, Amelia and James walked inside. King Andrias was sitting on his throne, surrounded by lady Olivia and his three royal analysts. Sasha and Jacob were already in there, both wearing their armors, standing next to Yunan. The young high general held the same worried expression Headmaster Albert had. "Are you okay?"

"The king's fine, lady Marcy," Lady Olivia explained, cold sweat running down her forehead and underlining the gravity of the situation. "As we all are. Luckily, wherever the attack came from, the castle wasn't targeted, not directly at least."

"What the heck is going on?!" The door opened again (to the Royal Guards' annoyance, someone may add) and in rushed the Plantars, accompanied by Ivy, Felicia and Maddie. Hop Pop and Felicia were still dressed in clothes too good-looking to be used on a common day. "There was some kind of loud explosion, and now the whole city's gone nuts!"

"Was that the Order? Weren't they defeated as we assumed?" The teashop owner murmured, tightly holding Ivy close to her, her daughter unable to protest.

"It wasn't the Order." The Royal Advisor announced. "Now that you're all gathered here-"

"Where is the enemy?!" The door slammed for the third time (one of the guards not fast enough to get out of the way this time, resulting in the door frame slamming his face and sending him to the floor as he held his face with a chagrin) as Polly and Frobot, followed by Bella, rushed inside. The tadpole looked around, like she was ready to fight, while the former bellhop had changed her everyday clothes with her army uniform, holding a sword in her arms. "Where did those cultists go?!"

"Perhaps it would be wise to wait a few more minutes, Royal Advisor." King Andrias said, looking at his trusted subordinate with a look of pity, the female newt now looking close to have a nervous breakdown. "Just in case someone else rushes through those doors, so you don't have to waste any more time and explain it only once."

He then turned to the six human kids, a tired expression on his face. "My dear friends, what happened today is not in any way tied to the Order of the Olms, nor to the former Captain Ernst. As far as our investigation has been concerned, the explosions that occured all over the city didn't seem to target any military objectives, nor where any ancient papers and documents could be found. In fact, it seems like the buildings attacked have been hit at random."

"AT RANDOM?" The headmaster gasped. "The inner districts have been targeted, over a thousand people dead or still missing, all of this was random?"

"Not to add, the population's going into panic." Yunan added with a thoughtful expression. "I had to redeploy most of our remaining soldiers to prevent new riots, and we still don't know how this enemy managed to strike us. After our last battle against the Order," as she spoke, Marcy looked aside, a hurt expression on her face, as the image of Ernst and her traumatized companions surge once again into her mind "we have reorganized new patrols and checkpoints to make sure infiltrators couldn't get inside our remaining facilities and into the castle. Everyone going inside and outside must have a valid reason to do so, and they must be checked every time they go through a checkpoint! It's not possible anyone could've sneaked their way inside once again! It is not-!"

Yet, as Yunan was finishing her rant, a sudden sound, resembling a cross between a record being scratched and a radio interference, came from the outside. The guards suddenly rushed into alarm, as they feared yet another attack was happening. Instead, they were surprised to see that, from one tall tower of the castle, visible from the throne room and most of Newtopia, some kind of device had activated itself and was now transmitting a three-dimensional holographic image of light blue color. Showing off the top half of a figure dressed in armor, with long hair and an aquiline nose on his face.

"Aiden!" The six humans, plus their friends and companions, all shouted at once, Yunan and Albert all gritting their teeth and narrowing their eyes, lady Olivia studying the figure with a keen eye. Andrias, for his part, didn't say anything, but his eyes widened, as he finally saw the face of the adversary who he had apparently been fighting for so long, turning his whole scheme against him, as he could hear a voice beginning to boom.

"People of Newtopia," the image of the evil prince announced, his voice so loud it could be heard from miles, anyone who was able to hear it stopping and watching in shock, terror and fear, their eyes focused on the face features of the human. "My name is Prince Aiden, Lord of the Black Tower. For too many years, you've enjoyed the fruits of dominance, plundering others for your own needs, amassing riches and powers while stripping other races and nations of their worth, leaving them to rot. For too many years, you've acted with arrogance, believing that your own power would allow you to act as you wished, acting like you were the chosen masters of this world, while in truth you were NOTHING but animals. But now, the time of plenitude has ended, and all the sins you've committed will be paid back with usury! Today, my forces will strike your city, and prove for the last and definitive time that your tall walls, your fortifications and your so-called armed forces are not enough to stop us."

"That's the Aiden who tricked Captain Grime and tried to burn Wartwood to the ground?" Yunan questioned as she looked at Hop Pop, the old frog reacting with an expression of horror, his mind drifting back to that day. The battle, the robots, the blood, the cruel way that toad had his skull crushed-

"Today, I declare war upon you. Upon your city, upon your nation, upon your whole heritage and culture!" The Aiden-hologram continued his speech, more and more people all over Newtopia stopping to listen, making shocked expressions and (whenever they had the chance) holding their family members close. As Marcy herself would have described it later, this sudden event was (to them) the 'First Contact' with another entity, and a hostile one to boot. "My armies will march upon your villages, upon your homes, upon your fields, until nowhere shall be safe anymore! Anyone who dares to resist shall be killed, for they can't stop the inevitable to happen. To any of them, and to anyone who will betray, I promise pain and devastation, destruction such as the world has never seen. Rain of pure fire, hail of burning ice, on every field, on every town, until there's nothing green left!"

"Not if I have something to say," lady Olivia hissed, Headmaster Albert close enough to hear her, and nod in agreement.

"Until you break, until you yield, this war shall rage on! There will be no peace, nor negotiations; we shall expect no mercy upon us, for you shall receive none."

"Good, that makes things easier." Bella commented as the Aiden-hologram, having stopped for a brief second, seemed to recoil, before continuing.

"As for your King, Andrias Leviathan, I have some words to say as well." King Andrias narrowed his eyes in response. "I know you, I know your folly, and I know your sins. You may have forgotten, but I surely didn't. So many wrongs you committed, and you will pay for each one of them. Today I'll attack your city, and you will find out that your position and your throne as far less secure than you assumed. By sunset, it will be clear who, among us, truly deserves to be the king. Your throne – is about to fall."

And then, the hologram shut down. The glowing image of Aiden disappeared as his words sank into the hearts and the minds of all Amphibians who had listened to them. And just then, another explosion, once again without warning, blasted in the city.

(…)

"Akitsu, I summon you!" Amelia yelled as she rushed through the castle's corridors, Ivy, Sprig and Polly (in Sprig's hands) rushing behind her. All around them, panic and confusion once again took hold of everyone's minds, the Royal Guards desperately trying to organize and follow the orders of their commanders while the castle's servants rushed to safety. With no way to know where Aiden's offense was coming from, and thus, no logical way to deduce which area of the castle was safe, it was pure chaos, as everyone tried to run, letting instincts and fears control their action.

But neither Amelia, nor the frog kids, had any intention of running. Rather, they intended to fight.

"Biz! Biz!" The large dragonfly hurried as Amelia once again jumped on its back, shooting upward as soon as everyone was on-board, the human trying to focus and localize the enemy.

"Come on, guys, we don't know what kind of threat we are facing!" The young samurai hurried, Akitsu flapping her wings faster and faster as it kept gaining altitude. "First thing first, we must locate the enemy forces, then-"

"Another explosion from the commercial district!" Sprig pointed with his hand, toward another blast of explosion who had apparently come from thin air. "How did that happen? I was looking in that direction!"

"I was, too!" Polly nodded. "There was nothing, then I saw something like a big bug, and then boom!"

"Guys, look!" Ivy pointed as well, but instead, she aimed above, "Where did those things come from? They weren't there a moment ago!"

Immediately, everyone else followed Ivy's indication, Akitsu even changing flight path to move directly in that direction, their eyes widening as they noticed they weren't alone in the sky.

About two hundred meters from their position (and another hundred meters above), large cylindrical containers, with elliptical bases, were hanging from as many hot air balloons, whose surfaces, painted blue with white spots, blended perfectly into the sky above the city. Of the same color were the bottoms of the cylinders, which, seen from below, were therefore invisible to the naked eye, partly because of the great distance.

And each balloon, with its cargo, was propelled by the high-altitude wind in a southerly direction toward the city.

"Balloons?!" Sprig exclaimed, almost not believing his eyes. "Aiden is attacking us… using hot air balloons?!"

"Those aren't common balloons!" Ivy replied, focusing further on the strange metal cylinders they carried, realizing that they were completely closed and airtight, and therefore unsuitable for transporting troops. "They look…. different-"

Just then, almost in answer to the questions each one of them had in their heads, one balloon's cylinder seemingly detached and dropped toward the ground, its current position and the wind push making it land on a small building, close to Army's main barracks.

The building exploded in a blaze of fire, Akitsu and the frogs looking with horror, Amelia's jaw open as the harsh reality was exposed in full.

Aiden was attacking the city… from the air.

(…)

"Come on! Quickly, quickly!" One Newtopia Army's soldier yelled, as he hurried the civilians inside the building to rush outside, before the fire spreading from the nearby reached it. "Take only the essential things with you! Move with order, hold each other by hand!"

Amid the chaos, James felt like the world around him was going in slow motion, as he felt pulled from one side to another, his mind recalling anything that happened in the last half hour. Aiden's speech and his promise to bring pain and destruction, the new explosion, panic spreading among the castle's halls. Amelia was the first to rush away, followed right after with Sasha taking Jacob and Marcy with her, while Anne rushed in the opposite direction. Everyone of them tried to do something as they lost sight of each other amid the chaos.

And now, here he was, all alone, with no idea where any of his friends were, surrounded by soldiers of the Newtopia Army and volunteers (plus a few Night Guards), desperately trying to save as many people as they could, even as new explosions could be heard in the distance.

"Poppy!" A small newt child (an eft, as Marcy had explained once) yelled, as she dropped her doll, the girl leaving her mom's side and rushing to get it back, ignoring the yells of his family and the soldiers who told her to get back on the line, interrupting the evacuation without meaning to.

How many people had died already? How many more would die by sunset, as consequence of today's assault? How many more people would find themselves without a limb, or a family member, or a home, after today?

When the Order blew up half of Newtopia, James was in the lower districts, doing intelligence work as his alias 'the Whisper'. Trying to collect info about the Order, just as their mooks were hiding bombs in many buildings. When the explosions happened, he was too far away to provide concrete help.

When the Duke launched his coup, James was far away at sea, accompanying Admiral Blueocean and fighting fake pirates. The fleet returning just in time to provide critical help to defeat the rebels, but not in time to avoid so much losses among the civilians.

Was this what he would be condemned to? To see people around him suffer, without any way to stop such horrors to happen?

A whistle could be heard from above, the human and the Amphibians looking up to see something, in the distance, falling toward them. None of them knew what it was, but as they heard the sound, and they saw the dot become bigger with any passing second, they realized that it was Death, and once it reached them, many would die.

The crowd scattered in panic, the soldiers rushing to take cover (no matter how useless that would've been), a few children starting to cry, either for having lost their families into chaos, or because they were unable to make sense of the world around them.

Only James stood still, as his eyes focused on the falling object.

Was this how he was going to end? Killed among the crowd, with none of his friends to his side? And his family condemned to never see him ever again?

Yet, as that though passed through his mind, something else awoke inside of him.

He felt anger, at the injustice he was forced to witness.

He felt sadness, for all the people who would be forever scarred by today's events.

He felt disgust, at the idea someone could have wanted all of this.

But above anything else, he felt determination.

It was like a flick had been switched onto his brain, disorientation and confusion replaced by determination. His anger fueling the rebellion: he wasn't going to die. Not here, not today.

And neither anyone else would.

The Amphibians around him were still scattering in panic when, suddenly, a blast of pure white light exploded among them, many crying, thinking their time had finally come. Only a handful, most of them children, saw the lone human teen glowing with power, his hair and eyes filling with white energy, his feet detaching from the ground as his body began to levitate, small glowing constructs like star appearing around him.

«For the eternal vision, for everyone who dream,"

James began to say, his lips moving on their own, the bright, burning power who had been hidden in his bloodstream for so long erupting into vision.

"I'll give my all to protect my team;"

The whistle became louder, as the object continued its fall, toward the ground where James stood, ready to face it.

"Let's spread the words, let it carry to the wind,"

Among the onlookers, the children stopped crying, as they focused on James. The human's energy flushing through his body and concentrating on his arms, the glow becoming brighter and brighter. Yet, no one looked away, nor they felt need to cover their eyes, for the light was not damaging. Rather it felt… belonging?

"Hope's not lost - IMAGINATION'S RUNNING WILD!"

With a loud yell, James pointed his arms upward, his hands open as he shot a blast of bright white power, like he was going to intercept the enemy cylinder. But then, the blast stopped raising in height, and it began to spread, forming an energy shield above the area at first, and then, covering one district after another, until the whole city was covered by the shield. All over the city, frogs, newts, toads and axolotls gasped in wonder, as they saw the bright white shield forming over their city, from the castle in the center to the walls that surrounded it, enveloping it completely.

It was then, a split second after the shield was completed, that the enemy cylinder impacted on its surface, the Amphibians looking away and praying as they saw the huge explosions impact on the shield, perhaps doubtful even such a wonder would have been able to resist the impact.

And yet, once they looked again, no visible damage was left onto the energy shield, a column of bright energy still connecting it to James, the British teen levitating, the white Calamity energy flooding through his body, a determined grin upon his lips.

Bring it on, you psycho royal brat, James mentally challenged, as bright white blood started to come out his left nostril, I'm not letting you hurt anyone else today!

(…)

Unknown to James, not all his friends were too distant from his current position. In the specific, three of them were gathering on the main plaza, trying to coordinate their own comrades and subordinates into action, when they saw the bright white shield form above the city.

"No way!" Jacob gasped as he gazed upon the sky. "James's doing this? JAMES?!"

"Guess like your bro finally managed to activate his own Calamity Powers." Sasha replied, the blonde girl smiling as he saw yet two more explosions impact on the shield, unable to dent (let alone pierce) it. "Welcome in the club, Jim-boy."

"He… he's making a deflector shield, big enough to cover the whole city and powerful enough to stand multiple blast, one after another." Marcy noted, taking out her journal and drawing a sketch of the city and the energy shield surrounding it. "Just like the ones in Star Wars, or Star Trek!"

"That's what I'm worried about." Jacob pointed out, flinching as yet another explosion happened in the distance. "Even the strongest shield will break, once you hit it enough times!"

"Guys!" A female voice yelled, the three humans seeing Akitsu descend from the Sky, Amelia on her back as usual) while Sprig, Ivy and Polly sat behind her. "We must tell you something. The attack-"

"What's going on?" Polly interrupted, looking at the bright white Calamity energy covering the city. "When Akitsu flew through it, it didn't stop us!"

"Brin bind!"

"That's James!" Marcy explained. "Seems like he had managed to activate his powers just in time! But we don't know how much it will last."

"Then you surely won't like what I'm going to tell you." Amelia looked down, a worried expression on her face. "We've found out how Aiden's attacking the city: he has some huge bombs attached to balloons, painted so they can't be seen from the ground. I don't know how they do that, but once they're over the city, the bond breaks and they drop their payload on Newtopia, hitting anything they land on! And what's worse, we've tried to destroy them, but… there are too many."

"How many are you talking?!" Sasha gasped, her eyes widening in horror as her small, adoptive sister hurried to answer.

"Hundreds of balloons, each one carrying one of those bombs!" Ivy lamented, waving with her hands to emphasize her own words. "Perhaps more. Amelia tried to destroy them, but…"

"… let's say it was like repelling an invasion of mosquitos by killing one at the time." Sprig concluded. "That's why we came back to warn you."

The four humans looked at each other: while the situation wasn't as tragic as it would have probably been without James' shield, it was still quite dire. Bomb after bomb, blow after blow, James' shield would eventually give up, and Newtopia would thus be once again exposed to the destruction Aiden had sent them, on the wings of the wind.

"Ok, guys, listen up!" Sasha suddenly roared, resolve filling her eyes as the pink Calamity Energy imbued into her body began to activate automatically, countless plans and strategies forming in her head. "Our mission objectives are as follow: we must assist James as much as we can, to reduce his strain and allow the shield to stand up, while our ground forces focus on the evacuation. Amelia, if you and your pet find Boonchuy, tell her about the situation and have her come with you. Try to destroy as many bombs as you can, or failing that, to redirect them someplace else."

"Banzai!" Amelia nodded, Akitsu buzzing in agreement as they both took on flight, zooming over the city until they disappeared from their sight.

"Marcy, is Joe Sparrow in condition to fly?"

"Well, I suppose so?"

"The same! Jacob, you go with her: you can shoot lighting from your fingers, use them to blow those balloons to kingdom come!"

"Ready to bring the thunder!" Jacob nodded, without any hint of disobedience as he and Marcy rushed toward the castle and the Royal stables, where Joe was currently kept.

"Polly, how high can Frobo shoot his lasers?"

"Huh, I don't know?" The tadpole replied, mentally chastising herself for never having tested that before.

"Then I guess this is a good time to find out!" The blonde human replied. "Sprig, Ivy, help Polly find Frobo. After that, Polly, you and Frobo find a suitable place you can use as an observation point, preferably someplace tall and that allow you to see everything in the sky around you. Try to target Aiden's bombs, destroy as many as you can!"

"Hey, what about us?" Sprig protested.

"Yeah!" Ivy joined. "We want to help too!"

"You will." Sasha replied instantly. "Once you have found Frobo, search for the others. Tell the King, or Yunan, or anyone who'd listen to you, about what you have seen in the sky. Tell them to set ballista, or anything they have in the castle that can be used to shoot down flying targets. Ask Maddie if she has some spell that we can use, either to use on the offense against the balloons, or in defense to protect the city and support James' shield. Find Hop Pop and Felicia, and tell them we must take advantage of all the time we have to move as many people as we can inside the castle. It's big enough to contain all of Newtopia's population, but it covers a much smaller area. If we move everyone inside, we can hopefully reduce the area that James' shield needs to cover, and thus, the strain onto him."

"That's a good idea!"

"But, what about you?" Ivy asked, looking at Sasha with an inquisitive look. "Aren't you coming with us back at the castle?"

"No, not yet at least." The former cheerleader replied, a very crazy, stupid and risky idea blossoming in her brain, yet one which could have given them a better chance of success if successful. "First… there's someplace else where I need to go."

(…)

From the balcony of his castle, King Andrias Leviathan, ruler of Amphibia, watched as more and more explosions happened in the distance, their destructive power neutralized by the strange white energy shield that was now covering the whole city.

Over a thousand year ago, a similar shield would have protected the city from much more dangerous threats and attacks, so strong and powerful nothing less than a planetary impact could have broken through. And the city wouldn't be forced to endure such aggression without a chance to return fire either. There would be laser cannons and antimatter projectiles, fleets of radio-controlled aircraft and veritable legions of robot soldiers, which the kings of the past could deploy at the push of a button. A war force so deadly and lethal that no enemy would ever risk attacking Newtopia, knowing full well that to do so would be almost as foolish as suicide.

Yet, so many things had changed in over a thousand years. And now, had it not been for the last of the Calamity holders activating their abilities, Newtopia would be suffering even more devastating blows.

"Your majesty!" Captain Ayn yelled, reaching her sovereign's side. "We've just received a report from General Yunan: our ground troops are currently busy with the evacuation of all affected districts and city areas, and relocating the city's population within the castle. Shall we do that?"

"Yes," the King replied, without even turning his head, his eyes still fixed onto the landscape and the explosions happening in the distance, "let the civilians affected by the attack within the castle's walls. Have all available ballista or long-range unit deployed on the walls, ask the General and Headmaster Albert to set anything we must destroy the enemy's weapons before impact. We don't know how long we have until Ser James runs out of power."

"That thing," Ayn gasped, looking at the shield covering the whole city, mentally comparing it with an image of James, "is one of those humans' doing?"

"I guess now you see why I held them in so high consideration, right?" The King allowed a proud smile to blossom on his face. "Now go and relay my orders. I trust you and the rest of our military leaders will be able to fend off this vile attack upon us and bring us victory!"

"Y-yes, Your Majesty!" Ayn gasped, her heart and pride growing five times that day as the king himself expressed his utmost trust to her. "To protect Newtopia, the Royal Guard shall stand!" She saluted, rushing away as fast as she could, once again leaving the king to his meditations.

Today, I declare war upon you, the words of the hologram resounded in his head, almost on a loop. Upon your city, upon your nation, upon your whole heritage and culture.

So, this is the Aiden those kids were talking about, the old king thought, thinking back on the appearance he had seen when the hologram went off. A nasty, arrogant brat! Yet one smart and capable enough to pull several wrenches into my plans.

To infiltrate the Order of the Olms, and manipulate Ernst into turning the Order against him, going beyond what they were supposed to do;

To turn Duke Pyrforian into another of his pawns, so he could rile up the oligarchy faction and have them launch a coup against him, something those nobles would have never had the guts to ever think without someone else directing them;

To take hold of the various bandit clans and gangs infesting the wildernesses beyond Newtopia and unifying them through blood and discipline into an army that, as for now, controlled the whole region surrounding Death's Eye Mountain, threatening all land connections between the capital and the Northern and Eastern Toad Towers. To reestablish those routes, the Army and the Night Guard had sent substantial forces, under the command of some of their most promising and determined officers. And according to the reports received so far, every detachment had been defeated and forced to retreat, or surrender, or annihilated to the last soldier.

Two more blasts echoed in the distance, the Calamity white energy shield fizzing yet still standing strong and resistant.

Andrias smiled. Sure, Aiden had caused him several problems but, by exposing himself, the human had now given him the upper hand.

By revealing himself as the one 'controlling' Ernst, Aiden had given Andrias the possibility to hide his own involvement in the matter, even helping him to 'get rid of' those untrustworthy zealots since he had no more use for them.

By turning the duke into a slave, and using to lead the nobles into a revolt, he had also removed a considerable force that would indubitably oppose him and his masters, as soon as the Gems were fully recharged and back in their control.

And now, by revealing himself with such a loud announcement, Aiden was giving Andrias the perfect chance to further strengthen his manipulation onto the six humans, allowing him to paint the snotty human prince as the 'threat' against them the six humans were already aware of.

Your offense was surely a daring one, little prince, the king mused as his attention moved back to his Flipwart game, where six figures representing each new holder of the Calamity Stones stood between his own figure and Aiden's, like they were 'protecting' him. Yet, you forgot the most important lesson of Flipwart:

A failed attack exposes your defenses.

(…)

"Frog, just how many of them are there?!" Anne yelled loudly, holding on Amelia's back, Akitsu under them buzzing and hissing as more and more bomb-carrying balloons kept on appearing in the distance.

"Too many to count! I've tried already." The would-be samurai replied, seeing yet another bomb dropping from above and impacting on the clad-white shield underside them. "I hope you're ready to use your powers, because I think we'll need you at top of your capabilities!"

"Yeah, I can see that..." The Thai-American teenager replied with an audible gulp, as she tried to focus, once again repeating the short mantra she had by now learned by heart.

"When peace is lost, when suffering has come,

let all evil be undone."

The girl sighed, as she felt her own power activate within her bloodstream, her eyes once again turning bright blue under her lids, the sticks and leaves stuck in her hairdo once again growing into branches, the energy of her Calamity stone condensing in her arms.

"Accept your emotions and join our fight,

Heart conquer it all, believe in the azure light!"

Akitsu felt the weight on his back become lighter, before seeing Anne jump out of her, clad in bright blue energy.

Anne's eyes focused on the bombs in front of her, pointing her hands at them and releasing powerful blast of pure energy. Each 'bomb-balloon' they came in contact with exploding instantly, vanquished like powder under a rainstorm, leaving not even the smallest traces of debris behind. How many balloons were destroyed with just one go? Two, three, five, ten, twenty?

Akitsu had no way to know for sure: unlike her human friend and companion, she never had a chance to learn proper math. But she had big eyes to see a somewhat large chunk of the sky was now freed of the bombs, the dragonfly flapping her wings as fast as she could and taking back Anne on her back, the girl visibly tired yet showing off a huge smirk.

"Anne, that was awesome!" Amelia congratulated her.

"Yeah! Still, it is still too early to celebrate." Anne replied. "The balloons you just blew up were only a small chunk of the incoming ones. And there still many-"

"FOR THE EMPIRE AND EMPEROR PALPATINE!" Another voice, this one belonging to a certain Star Wars fanboy shouted in the distance. Anne and Amelia turned their heads just in time to see Joe Sparrow flying towards them. The sparrow now wearing golden engraved armor with a carved symbol resembling the one on Newtopia's flag across the chest and a similarly golden helmet to protect his skull with a single, green feather protruding from it. Marcy was holding the bird's reins and directing his flight while, holding onto her with one hand, was Jacob. The boy used his other hand to shoot blast after blast of bright yellow lightning towards other balloons.

"That figures," said Amelia, shaking her head, yet with a timid smile on her lips. "My brother's gone full Sith path."

"Well, he's also using his power for a good cause so… we could call him a Light Side Sith?"

"Anna-Banana, Amelia!" Marcy screamed in delight as she brought Joe Sparrow close to Akitsu, the bird chirping smugly and causing the dragonfly to roll her eyes with badly hidden irritation. "We're here to help you!"

"Captain Jacob of the Newtopia Army, ready to assist you!" Jacob saluted. "Did you see what I've just done? I just pointed my hand, and then lighting shot out of my fingers, and those balloons go boom!"

"We've seen." Anne nodded before focusing again on the sky in front of them. Thanks to her blast, and Jacob's 'Sith lightnings', no more bombs were crashing on this side of the shield. Yet, seeing the large number of balloons in the distance, it was clear they only earned themselves a small reprise, to reorganize before resuming their defense. "Ok guys, we still need to destroy as many balloon and bombs as we can to help James and his shield! Amelia, we're going to attack the ones coming from the right; Marcy, you and Jacob focus the ones on the left!"

"Understood!" The male teen replied, before giving his adoptive younger sister a look of challenge. "Hey, Amelia, how about we start a bet? The one who blows more balloons wins!"

"Oh yeah?!" Amelia replied. "Then it's on! And I'm even raise with fifty golden coins that I'm gonna be the winner!"

"Agreed, get's ready to pay!"

(…)

"Come on, move, move!" General Yunan yelled, trying to coordinate her own soldiers as the panic-frenzied crowd kept pushing, threatening to trample anyone who fell down. "Have the civilians brought in the southern courtyard, move the ballista on the eastern and northern wall. I want all weapons ready to fire on the enemy's balloons, and I want them yesterday!"

"General Yunan!" a certain female voice shouted, the young yet experienced general turning around to see Bella. "I brought news from the eastern districts: a few bombs who had fallen before the shield went up started a fire, and now the flames threaten to expand. Our local forces in the area had been unable to put the fires down so far, but they need reinforcements!"

"We don't have any to spare!" Yunan hissed, looking around as two more explosions happened in the distance, shaking the shield and seemingly creating a few cracks. The cracks quickly disappeared, as the shield apparently 'self-healed' yet their sight was more than enough to further rile the civilians, adding even more chaos to the mess.

Olm's spit, we can't keep going like this! Yunan thought, as she desperately tried to coordinate her own troops, to stomp out the chaos and restore order within the city, even as more and more attacks kept happening. What's going to happen once the shield gives up, and the city would once again be left vulnerable to the strikes coming from the sky?

"Go back to the eastern districts, tell them to cut all ways out so the fire can't spread. We'll try to put it down once our situation had stabilized!" Yunan ordered Bella. "Also, try to reestablish contact with Headmaster Albert, and tell him that we need his Night Guards to man our walls. We don't know how long this shield-"

A new explosion, coming from not too far, clashed on the energic shield, the white Calamity energy fizzing as a large hole was ripened within it, leaving a large chunk of the city underside it vulnerable to further attacks. Thankfully, no other bomb came to take advantage of the opening, allowing the shield to heal himself once again.

Hold it, James, Yunan silently prayed, something she had never relied heavily before, you can do it lad, just hold still and keep the shield up. You can do it, I promise…

(…)

"Enemy bombs incoming!" Shouted Ivy, looking through a binocular. "Three o' clock, height twelve thousand!"

From the roof of one of the castle's towers, the same one where the six humans and their families were currently housed, Polly, Frobo and Ivy were busy leading an impromptu position of anti-air fire. The large robot's laser being artillery while the young frog and tadpole helped direct the defense. Already the number of impacts on the shield had severely reduced, thanks to the combined actions of Jacob, Anne, Amelia and Marcy in the sky, yet a few balloons had managed to sneak by, pushed by the wind towards the castle and threatening it.

Unless of course, someone else shot them down first.

"Ready to fire, Frobo!" Polly yelled as she stood on the shoulder of her mechanical friend, the large robot rotating his head and moving his visors until he noticed the balloons, getting ready to shoot.

"Fire!"

"Fire." Frobo repeated, shooting a powerful blast of laser toward its intended target, the energy hitting the bomb and making it detonate mid-air, the effect of the blast activating two more bombs who were carried a bit too close, their remains dropping down and impacting on the shield. Still, much less damage and pressure than the eventual explosions of those bombs would have caused.

"Target destroyed!" Ivy announced with a hint of pride. "We're doing a great job, Polly. And to think we never had some real collaboration before, at least not without Sprig."

"I know, it was long overdue the time for a girls-only fight scene!" The tadpole commented, before noticing something. "Hey, where's Maddie?"

(…)

"Move, move!" The spellcaster frog shouted, throwing a few more of her spell bags toward the crumbling building, stabilizing it temporarily and allowing the civilians who wee rushing underside it to finish evacuate the structure. "We don't have much time left!"

"Maddie!" Sprig called her, the pinkish frog all dirty with ashes and powder covering his face. "We did it, the building's empty now. Let's move on the next one!"

"Just one moment," the light blue frog checked her spell-belt, mentally counting the bags of Calamity blood-powered spells she still had available. Let's see…two, three… frog, just three left? And I don't have the materials to prepare more in the field!

"Maddie? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, just… I'm running out of spells. I don't have many left."

"Then let's make them count!"

(…)

Come on Sasha, you can do this! The blond girl hissed, trying to concentrate, even as the strain it took on her body and mind made her ache

Far away from the castle, on the Newtopia Army Main Barracks's roof, Sasha was attempting a desperate, yet decisive move that could've helped reduce the strain the bombs were causing on James' shield, and perhaps, stop the assault all together. The area she currently was in had been one of the first to be evacuated, and thus, the human girl was alone, no one in sight that could disturb her or spy on her.

When the attack had started, a part of her wished she had gone with her friends. To accompany them in the sky, using her Calamity powers to destroy as many balloon-bombs as they could, not only it would have prevented further stress on the shield (and thus, reduced the risk on James' health), but she would have had a chance to fight side by side with her friends, protecting them and watching them like she should have done a long time ago. A protector, a companion, a friend, not a stinky, ugly bully and liar, who used 'friendship' to excuse abuse and-

She stopped, taking a deep breath as she tried to focus, her Tai Chi training turning out to be useful as she meditated, trying to control the Calamity energy within her blood so it would act as she wanted

As much as her heart wanted to come to her friends' assistance, Sasha knew, in her mind, that doing so was not the most efficient way to solve their current situation. This is why she was here instead.

Because she had noticed a key opening, in Aiden's attack, that would allow them to neutralize it in just one go.

To carry all those explosives over such a long distance, Aiden had used balloons filled of hot air, painted to resemble the sky so they would be invisible from the ground, at least on naked eye. Yet, those balloons had no way to be directed, especially with no one on board, and they relied on the wind to carry them over their target.

Thus, if the wind's course was to suddenly change, so will the bombs too.

Ever since awakening her powers, on the day the Toads had attacked Wartwood, Sasha had continued to experiment and make tests on her abilities, getting more and more used to them, furthering her resistance level and the quantity of Calamity energy she could wield at the same time. Marcy's research allowed her to know more how her powers worked, how she could activate and focalize them, and reduce the stress they caused on her body.

And she knew how to use them to create large constructs, like Marcy herself had done on the day they had fought the Roaring Roosters' horde.

The girl closed her eyes, her legs crossed as she sat down on the lotus position, her mind focusing on the shape of the object she aimed to create, as the pink Calamity Energy within her body started to resonate, becoming stronger, more powerful, and brighter.

"For everyone who can't stand up and fight;

For those who are alone and lost in the night."

The girls' blonde hair began to fizzle, as the Calamity energy within her body poured into them, making them resemble a living flame, as her body began to detach from the soil, levitating in midair.

"Never again tyranny on you would befall,

Strength is here, to protect you all!"

As Sasha's lips moved automatically, the Calamity energy within her body began to exhume from her hands and her eyes, quickly condensing all around her, before stabilizing, taking shape and appearance of…

… a giant pink fan.

"Fire can be fought with fire, so why can't wind be fought with a stronger wind?" Sasha chuckled, as the fan began to activate. Its blades started to turn faster and faster, creating a powerful blast of air whose range and area of effect grew exponentially, minute after minute, in the same direction the enemy balloons were coming from.

---

For a while, the attack on the city continued, as the military forces within the walls struggled to reorganize and counterattack. On the air, the four humans, with the aid of their two flying mounts, fought side by side as they tried to destroy as many bombs and balloons as they could, supported from the ground by the anti-air fire provided by Frobo and the Newtopia Army's ballista.

On the ground, those without means and possibility to strike towards the sky tried to organize the evacuation of those areas who had been struck the hardest by the initial bombardment, fearing that, if the shield collapsed, the massacre upon their beloved town would resume. Yet, even as chaos raged within the city, none backed down, each one pulling their weight to help those who needed assistance, or to prevent further destruction.

Little by little, progress was made, especially after Sasha's giant fan started to create a counter-wind that broke the balloons formation and diverged their path southward, giving the others more time to successfully neutralize them. A few balloons, who were already too distant from the city, would be later neutralized by the Night Guard's ranger while others, having completely missed the city, would be later taken care of by the Navy.

And while all of this happened, a single British human teenager, whose emotional rush had managed to activate his own power and imbued within his body with the energy of the Calamity Stone of Imagination, refused to yield. Holding onto his own stubbornness and determination, even as each new blast against the shield caused more stress on his body. White blood was pouring out of his eyes and nose now, his muscles were aching, and the mother of all migraines had now made a permanent home inside his brain while his own heartbeat kept pounding harder and harder in his head.

How long will I still be able to resist? James thought as he gritted his teeth, the pressure over his body becoming more and more oppressing with every blast, how many forces does Aiden still have? Is he running low, or does he have reserves?

Yet, even as the strain became worse, the boy refused to give up. He thought back to his friends, who he had met when they all arrived at Amphibia. To Hop Pop and his grandchildren, who had taken them under their roof when everyone else assumed them to be monsters. To Maddie, the frog who wanted to redeem magic even if she had to fight the whole world. To Ivy and Felicia, the mom and child duo who had taken Sasha as part of their family. To lady Olivia, the petite newt advisor who was the King's right hand, and to countless other amphibians he had personally met and befriended in the last months. Each one of them counted on him to survive.

But no image was as strong and dear to him, as the one of his parents. James could almost see them, hear their voice, his dad giving him words of confidence to support his determination while his mom pleased, prayed for him to resist. They were waiting for him, back home, and if he wanted to see them again, he would have to survive long enough to do that.

"-mes? James!" A voice called out, yet to him, he was so distorted, it could have been very weel been an auditory hallucination.

"Hop… Pop?" The teenager spoke back, slowly, his voice barely louder than a whisper, his mind numbed by the effort he was pulling, the Calamity energy rushing inside and outside his body continuously, every non-essential body function of his slowed down to minimal level to reduce the risk of damage. Yet, his unmoving eyes could see the short figure of the old farmer run toward him, a splash of dirt on his jacket's shoulder. Felicia was with him, the teashop owner now having messy hair and dirt all over her clothes.

"Can't… move!… must keep… shield… protect city!"

"You did that already!" Felicia yelled. "You did it, James! You've protected the city!"

"Aiden's attack had failed!" Hop Pop nodded, hurrying to explain the situation. "His bombs were all destroyed or sent away, and the sky's safe once again! You did something incredible, my boy! Now please, for the love of Frog, stop using your powers!"

Those were the last words the British teen heard, as his eardrums popped right at that moment, blood flowing from the sides of his face as well now.

"I… did it?" James could barely hear the sound of his own voice. "It's… over?"

He couldn't hear Hop Pop's answer to that, nor Felicia's or anyone else, yet as he saw the pleading faces and urgent nodding of the frogs, his brain realized the answer his heart had been so desperately waiting for what had felt, to him, like a thousand years.

Slowly, the flow of energy stopped, and the shield over Newtopia started to flicker and dissolve, leaving glittering dust in its place that was quickly scattered by the wind, while James' body lowered back to the ground. The human hissing in pain as he tried his hardest to stand on his legs, feeling like all the bones in his body had been replaced with playdough. Everything hurt. He could barely breathe, his face was covered with blood, every muscle on his body was sore, his heart refused to slow down, and he was pretty sure he couldn't hold up his left arm anymore.

Yet, he didn't regret his action. He knew that, had he not done what he had, the bombardment on the city would have continued unimpeded, and many would have been hurt, or worse.

I have no regrets, the boy smiled, forgetting about his pain even just for a few seconds.

"Frog, I would kill for a hot shower right-"

As he tried to laugh off his condition, James stopped as he suddenly began to throw up blood. Hop Pop and Felicia, seeing this, desperately rushed to him, grabbing the human boy just as his legs gave up, Felicia grabbing him by the back and legs while the old farmer supported his head. Yet, their eyes widened once again with horror, and shocked expression mixed with dread as they saw something terrible happening right in front of them.

In order to use his Calamity powers for so long, James had pushed his body way past his own limit, holding his shield together by sheer determination even as the stress caused by the bombs impacts on its surface were passed onto him, and now, it was asking the toll.

With a sickening sound, the British teen felt his own chest tearing itself apart, his pectoral muscles and the skin covering them ripping as even more blood poured from his body, stanching his clothes even more. The pain was so intense, and so sudden, he couldn't even scream, his limbs drop without control as Hop Pop and Felicia desperately tried to help him, the teashop owner looking away, yelling, perhaps asking for a medic or help while the old farmer leaned even more onto him, saying words he couldn't hear anymore.

But James could still see, and as he watched Hop Pop's expression of horror and his pleading eyes, he realized what was going on.

He was going to die.

His eyes rolled back, hid body falling apart as even more wounds opened on their own, as his vision went dark and the world around him started to fade, going from images to shapes, to shadows, until everything around became black, the last bits of consciousness in his mind fading.

The last thought the human boy had, before his last strengths left him and he succumbed to oblivion, was to his parents… who he knew now, he was never going back to.

Mom… Dad… I'm sorry...

(…)

When Sasha finally arrived back to the castle, she found out that all of her friends were already back. Standing right in front of the king, Anne, Amelia, Marcy and Jacob were giving details of their courageous action in the sky of Newtopia. How they had destroy and send back Aiden's bombs with their power, while Yunan, Albert, Ayn and lady Olivia stood on one side in silence, watching with heartfelt expressions as the kids continued to narrate their own heroic feat.

On another side of the large room was Frobo, the large robot surrounded by Polly, Ivy, Maddie and Sprig, the four frog kids telling each other what they had done. They looked so excited, and their expressions were so happy… they looked like they had just returned from one of their adventures, not from a bonafide action of war.

They look so happy… like we were once. Perhaps, if I hadn't tried to control over our friendship and just let them do on their own-

"Sasha!" Marcy and Anne shouted at the same time as they noticed her, both girls rushing toward their blonde friend and hugging her as strong as they could, the former cheerleader frozen as she surely wasn't expecting such a warm welcome.

"Hey, girlfriends! Sorry I wasn't over there with you, but-"

"No need to apologize!" Marcy immediately interrupted her. "We have seen what you have done, redirecting the remaining balloons elsewhere."

"You did?"

"Yup, seen everything from the sky." Anne nodded, giving her a heartfelt expression too. "Nice doing, Sash. You surely gave us quite an edge up there: we were exhausted, and Jacob was missing more and more bombs-"

"I wasn't!" The aforementioned boy protested, trying to protect his pride. "But, well… I do have to admit it was a nice idea to create a counter-wind to move the balloons carrying the bombs away from the city. Only, a giant pink fan? Couldn't you do that with something cooler, perhaps a turbine?"

"I was trying to find the most cost-efficient and fastest way to protect the city, not the coolest one." Sasha snorted. "And besides, I have never seen a turbine close enough to know how they work in detail. A fan, I did."

"Frog, today was such a crazy adventure!" Ivy jumped in. "We fought together as a team, we protected the city-"

"-and we especially kicked Aiden's butt!" Polly nodded with a smirk. "If he was trying to scare us and convince us to surrender, I'd say he was dead wrong!"

"Indeed!" Yunan raised her arm, showing off the retractable blades in her armor. "Let them come, if they dare! We are ready to receive them!"

"Indeed, today it was a decisive day for all of Amphibia!" King Andrias said a smug expression on his lips as his eyes darted on the Flipwart chessboard on one side, already arranged to show off the 'failed' attack on Newtopia. "We were attacked, the very heart of our nation was threatened. Yet, not only we refused to give up and managed to fend off the menace, but we have also proved to our whole world that Newtopia still stand strong, and any wannabe conqueror that dares to challenge us will face defeat and dishonor!"

"I can't wait for Hop Pop to return, so I can tell him how many newts I helped today!" Sprig announced, looking around with an excited look, eagerly waiting for his grandfather to show. "I can't wait!"

"And so do I!" Ivy joined. "When mom's going to find out we managed to protect the city while staying safe, she will be proud!"

"By the way, where are they now?" Maddie asked with a puzzled look. "It's since the attack started that I haven't seen them."

"And James too!" Amelia joined in, realizing the true hero of the day was nowhere to be seen. "Activated his Calamity Powers AND saved the city on the same day? He deserves a party to celebrate him, a parade, a monument!"

"Just one?" Headmaster Albert questioned. "There is no way we can quantify how many lives the boy might have saved today, with that shield of him! Several of my own rangers said the bombs would have dropped right onto them, if it wasn't for his shield. I'd say, Lady Marcy, perhaps if you could convince him-"

"Oh no you don't!" Yunan hissed. "The lives of your rangers he saved today are nothing compared to the lives of mine soldiers he preserved! He should become an auxiliary member of the Newtopia Army!"

"Enough, both of you!" Captain Ayn put herself between them. "Act as the military leaders you're supposed to be, not as small efts quarreling for the last cricket fries! And besides, the boy's taken already!"

"Indeed, and I don't think Admiral Blueocean would be all too happy to share his pupil, especially after what he did today." Lady Olivia summed, smiling as both Albert and Yunan pouted. "Regardless, your friend did a great service to our kingdom today, and he shall receive an appropriate reward, as soon as he returns."

"Huh, actually…"

The chatter died down, as everyone turned head and looked at Andrias, the humongous newt king scratching the side of his head and looking down with a guilty expression.

"Ser James already returned… he was the first of you to do so. The problem is, he didn't return on his own, he had to be carried and… he wasn't conscious. You see-"

And then, the whole dam break down.

(…)

Jacob gasped as he rushed inside the room, struggling to keep his emotions under check. All around him, his friends and family, humans and Amphibians, all shared the same look of worries and fear. Too scared and worried to care about anything else as they followed him inside the room where James was 'supposedly' held.

What they found, generated further shock and horror, in many of them.

In a large medical room, with equipment and machinery no one of them had ever seen before, there was a large vat of circular shape, filled with bright green crystalline liquid, large tubes of different shape and nature attached to it and connecting the vat with many equipment of the room. On the upper side there was a round-shaped metallic top, from which other tubes departed, only this time, from the inside. Hop Pop and Felicia were already in the room, the old farmer marching back and forth and looking inside the vat while Felicia was sitting on one side, and she was trying to keep herself busy by tidying up the dirty uniforms that all of them knew belonged to James.

And inside the vat, floating in the liquid, was the boy of the hour himself, James Blueingham. Holder of the Calamity Stone of Imagination and Hero of Newtopia. He was dressed in some kind of weird latex uniform that covered him almost completely, except for his head, the palm of the hands and the soles of the feet. Many tubes, connected with the metallic top of the vat, were attached to his suit, while the main one connected with a breathing mask covering his chin, mouth and nose, bringing fresh oxygen to his damaged lungs. His eyes were closed, and thus, he seemed to sleep, like the water where he was submerged lulled him.

"JAMES!" The five humans and their families yelled verbatim, rushing toward the vat, Hop Pop and Felicia hearing that and moving to intercept them.

"Shhh, keep quiet, kids!" Hop Pop said. "Your friend's very hurt, and if we want to see him healed, we need not to disturb."

"James…" Jacob murmured, nodding as he kept approaching the tank, putting his hand on the glass and looking at his 'bro' in the liquid. "What-what happened to him?"

"He strained his body, by over-stretching his Calamity Powers after having just awakened them, with the result of damaging his own physique." The calm, yet solemn voice of King Andrias announced, as the large king walked into the room, looking at the human in the vat with a sad expression. "He was quite lucky he had you to carry him as fast as you did, Mr. Plantar and Mrs. Sundew. Had he been even just one minute later-"

"I saw my kid's chest rip itself apart, I could basically see the organs inside!" The old farmer lamented, fear and shock still rushing high within his blood.

"I know, and I wish to thank you for bringing him to me as soon as you could. Yet, hadn't I had this-"

"What is… this stuff?" Marcy murmured as she approached the healing vat, her mind already starting to wonder how such a machinery worked, before she started to make connections with other memories. "And its tech… it's so similar to the ones we saw back at the Ruins of Despair."

"I can't say where it come from, only that it was already here for a long time before I was even born." Andrias explained, repeating the lies he had rehearsed for over a month by now. "This thing is a healing vat, the very last one left in the whole kingdom. Our ancestors once used devices like these to heal their wounded. The life-enhancing liquid they contain was said it could heal even amphibians that were on the brink of death itself. People who had lost half their body or even missing entire organs … this machine brought all of them back."

"A medical wonder who can heal even such wounds?" Sasha gasped, thinking about it. If such a tech was available on Earth, things like cancer or other serious illnesses would be gone in less than a month.

A ultra-powerful healing vat, just like in those sci-fi movies, Jacob thought at the same time, remembering how he had already seen devices like that in some old comics he used to read back home. I feel like this would be the perfect set-up for some 'fish' joke, but after what my bro did and how close he got to… well, I don't feel like joking at this moment.

This healing vat tech could be connected to the ancient Amphibian society whose remains we have already seen, both on Dawnblood Island and inside the factories at the Ruins of Despair? Well, it says Newtopia was the only one of the ancient cities of the past to survive even after the Box was lost… huh, that's strange. Marcy looked up to James and for a brief moment, her face replaced the boy in the vat's one.

Why do I have the impression that I could have been the one to end up inside that?

"Will he be fine?" Anne asked, saying aloud the question everyone was thinking already.

"Oh, that I can promise you." The King nodded, with a solemn expression. "It won't be a fast thing, the liquid has a lot of damage to repair and reverse, your friend will probably spend a full week in there, perhaps more. However, I can guarantee that he will be fine, eventually… that is, if nothing else bad happens in the meantime."

The humans and frogs all stuttered, looking at each other.

"But fear not, brave adventurers. For your actions today have prevented that from happening. With the so-called Prince Aiden's attack being a total failure-"

And then, the floor shook, and from outside the rooms, the guards called for the king, as the real hand of Aiden was fully revealed.

(…)

Far away from Newtopia and King Andrias' castle, in the area known as the Ruins of Despair, there was a great movement of toad soldiers inside the ancient frog-shaped buildings. They were intent on accumulating large quantities of crates and spherical objects with mysterious contents. It was very slow and difficult work, and the toads often looked around, as if afraid that at any moment the royal army might appear to attack them.

But nothing happened, as they worked ceaselessly, following the directions their commander-in-chief gave from the top of a normal small hillock. A tall metal soldier with a long sword in his hands (in proportion, twice as tall as an adult toad) at his side to ensure their protection.

"Lord Aiden," one of the toads saluted, kneeling with both legs, his gaze moving nervously between his commander and the giant ever-glaring figure to his side. "We are ahead of the schedule. We are just finishing undermining the last buildings, after which we will be ready to proceed."

"Great." Replied the prince with a look full of satisfaction. "Pass on my order, have all the toads who no longer have tasks to do on the heights fall back, and seal the entrances to the buildings we've already filled with the explosives. I don't want to risk leaving anything to Andrias and his servants."

"Yes, my lord." The toad saluted once again before rushing away, as fast as his legs allowed him. No matter how cordial the prince looked like, it wasn't healthy to stand in his presence for more time than was required.

Sitting on a small makeshift throne, the self-proclaimed prince took a deep breath of fresh air before he savored one of the results of the various looting and pillaging his army had done in the past few weeks, a single glass of fine Amphibian wine. As he relished the delicious beverage, he watched, far down below, the last of his toads carrying the remaining boxes of explosives inside the ancient former factories. Advance manufacturing complexes that, over a thousand years ago, could build an army of frobots in mere hours.

He knew that, as soon as all the gems of the Calamity Box were fully recharged, Andrias would use it to reactivate the factories. This is why he had to make sure such a threat was permanently neutralized.

He mused for a second, wondering if his 'brethren' had appreciated the message he had broadcasted to everyone in Newtopia, as well as the bombardment he set upon the city. It had been expensive to build so many balloons with bombs attached to them, especially in terms of boomshroom explosive mixture.

Yet it would be worth it, for the outcome he had set for.

That destructive aerial assault onto Newtopia, the capital city of Amphibia, the home of King Andrias himself… nothing more than a distraction, a way to keep him and his forces occupied while he would strike a real decisive blow on his enemies.

"All sapper squads report they've finished their task, sir." The tall Alfer said in his monotone, mechanical voice, cold as the blade within his hands. "Shall we begin?"

"No, let those squads get to safety with their companions. As amusing it would be, their lives are still too valuable to be wasted for my enjoyment." The Evil Prince nodded. "For today, they shall live. Such is my will."

As the last toads hurried to leave the area and rejoin their companion on the hills, Aiden took a moment as he delved in his own memories, thinking back to the first time he had stumbled upon those ancient constructions. At the time, he had been nothing but a lost soul, with no possession besides the clothes he wore, moving only when it was night to avoid being seen, scavenging food for his own needs and hiding in caves or abandoned buildings to sleep during the day. The Ruins of Despair, on first impression were nothing to him but a convenient place to hide and rest, as he struggled every day to survive in this land ruled by demons and monsters.

He didn't know then, of the technological wonders he would find once inside. How he would spend centuries of his now immortal life trying to break through their secrets, to the point of knowing how Amphibian tech did what it did, even better than its ancient creators probably ever did. How he would start to scavenge anything he'd find useful, with countless trips, bringing it to someplace where he started to disassemble and reassemble it.

How he would use such knowledge, and his own intellect, to build an army that would, in time, pose a greater threat to Newtopia and its demonic rulers than their Frobot army ever did to any other world they had conquered and pillaged.

"All toads are now beyond the safety line." The Alfer spoke once again. "Your Majesty, we are ready to begin."

"Good." The Prince nodded with an evil smirk, marching to the small console he had set earlier, with several wires detaching from it, each one of them connected to a detonator, each detonator attached to a huge pile of explosives and flammable material in each of the Frobot factories.

At that moment, his mind wandered once again, bringing back the image of Andrias, back when he was still a prince, and his father Aldritch was the king back then.

"You don't seem to understand…" the eternal boy said, his hand reaching for the trigger. "Earth isn't your to conquer."

He pressed the trigger.

Barley a few seconds later, explosions erupted violently from inside the abandoned factories, the deadly mixture of boomshrooms and other ingredients reducing everything inside them to ashes before bursting violently through the partially sealed doors, and whatever openings were in the walls. Many, unable to fully vent the shockwave of the explosions within them, were absolutely obliterated. The violence of the detonations was such that the walls collapsed and released the flames within them in high blazes that soared skyward.

From the hills where they had assisted to the detonations in complete safety, the toads of the Hand Army began to cheer. Treating the event like an impromptu firework show, giving out roars and yell of excitement as the fire quickly began to spread all over the area, burning technological leftovers and biological lifeforms without distinction. Yet none among them could understand the full extent of their action.

Only one did.

With the destruction of the last factories, Andrias will now never be able to rebuild his army, even if he managed to get his hands of a fully-recharged box. By the time the fire was done, there would be nothing left for him to rebuild. And thus, one of the two only credible threats that Andrias could use against him was gone forever.

The other one being the Box itself, and the stones powered by the energy of their holders.

Aiden knew that it was only a matter of time before Andrias would send his six brethren out to the temples, convincing them with lies and manipulation to give up their powers just so they could recharge the stones, without telling them how he planned to use the Box to conquer and enslave their very world instead than simply send them back home. And with six holders, and six gems, there were six temples the kids would have to visit before the Box was fully recharged once again.

Aiden knew about the temples, but most importantly of all, he knew where some (not all) of them were located. And he knew that, by keeping watch over them, he would be able to stay informed on the Box's situation.

Rehys hasn't returned yet, and until he returned, he couldn't act directly. Yet, he could bide his own time, keeping himself out of focus and simply protect the six other humans from afar, while they would visit each temple to recharge its respective gem.

And with every temple visited, and every gem recharged, one of them would lose their powers.

"It is mine to protect." The boy finished his early sentence with a smug smile, watching over the devastation he had caused. That was the vow he had made, a long time ago: to protect his world from the threat looming over it, to spare any other humans the same destiny he had been forced through, to stop the never-ending thirst of conquest a whole world of disgusting Amphibians had fort any other.

To preserve Erda, Amphibia had to be destroyed.

To save the future of Man, this whole forsaken world had to be reduced in ashes.

To protect Man, all Amphibians had to die.

(…)

Humans and Amphibians all watched in horror from the balcony, as they saw a tall column of fire and smoke rise toward the sky, so tall and bright it was clearly visible even from such a distance. Many citizens of the town say it too, and pointed at it, looked at it with shock and horror, a few even rushing to hide once again as they feared the worst hadn't passed yet.

Only one, among them, realized what was happening, as he gritted his teeth and felt bitterness and anger fill him inside, realizing the tall column of smoke came in the direction of the Ruins of Despair.

Stupid, stupid, the king mentally chastised himself, realizing that his enemy had been a cunning one. The whole attack on Newtopia… it was nothing but a large distraction, a trick to keep his attention focused while his enemy moved for their real goal.

"W-what's happening?" Sprig said, with tears at his eyes. "We had won, didn't we?"

"That, was only a distraction." Sasha replied, having made the same conclusion that king Andrias had done. "I guess I should have foreseen that."

"What do you mean?" Anne gasped, unable to deal with so many emotions had the same time, struggling as she tried to keep her own powers under control.

"Think about it, girls: a whole attack forces made of by bombs carried by balloons pushed by the wind, whose path can be reversed or altered by the smallest change of wind, just like I did with the giant Fan? No one would use such an overly-complicated system to attack a city… unless of course, it was all meant to be a distraction the whole time."

"You mean, all the bombs we destroyed, all the lives we saved… it was all for nothing?" Ivy seemed now on the verge of crying.

"No, that's not true." Felicia reassured her daughter, hugging her and letting her vent her emotion on her chest. "It wasn't all for nothing. Each life we saved today… all the destruction that we stopped or prevented… it wasn't fake. Even if the whole scope of the attack was simply to act as distraction, what Aiden did was something that could have still caused much more devastation and loss of lives if we hadn't done anything. What James did… what each one of us did… the attack may have been a diversion, but the pain that crazy psycho attempted to bring in here was indubitably real."

"Indeed." Hop Pop nodded, a rare look of determination and rage blossoming on his face. "Our enemy surely has proven to be even more cunning and calculating than we expected, but that doesn't mean all hope is lost. What we have proved today, it still stands. We fought together, and we triumphed together. I may be old, but I'm not going to give up, not here, not now."

"Me neither!" Polly announced, Frobo doing a thumps up. "We are at your side, guys, forever and ever!"

"And you won't be alone neither." Yunan nodded. "From now on, the Newtopia Army will be at your side, till the threat to our beloved nation is once and this Aiden is neutralized once and for all!"

"The Night Guards too are at your side! We will protect our citizen and kick back this monster into the shadows he emerged from!"

One by one, humans and Amphibians gathered together, giving each other strength and support, even as the tall firing pillar in the distance kept getting more and more visible. They knew in their heart, that a war had begin, and they would be right in the middle of it.

Yet, their hope didn't fall, as they stood together, in defiance…