Of all the cities that Frank had been to in the weird and wonderful world of Amphibia, Newtopia was truly a spectacular place to be in. It had only been one day since he and his friends made it to the capital city of the kingdom, and the experience was like night and day. Outside the walls was a land of savage beasts and grizzly deaths, with small villages with strange people like Wartwood. Inside the walls, however, was a civilized city with modern commodities.
For example, fast food.
"Enjoy, everyone!" Marcy said to her friends. "This place makes the best beetle burger in all of Newtopia!"
The gang was currently at a burger place, only with beetle beef instead of cow beef. However, as Frank sank his teeth into the burger, he couldn't tell the difference. In fact, it was supremely delicious. He sat between Anne and Marcy at an outside table, situated near the front door.
"Marcy, this is awesome," Frank said with a mouth full of beetle food.
"Thanks. Actually, it was Yunan who showed me this place," Marcy said, pulling out her journal. "You'd like her."
Frank swallowed the food and smiled at Marcy, remembering just how great it was to be around her. Perhaps it was nostalgia, but the Hispanic boy had forgotten how much fun it was to be around Marcy—when he or Anne weren't trying to keep her from getting herself killed. The girl practically radiated sunshine, and after how much of a jerk he was to her, Frank didn't want to lose that sunshine in his bleak life.
"So, so what you got there," he asked, pointing to her journal.
"Oh, just my journal," Marcy said, presenting a notebook with an outward-covered spine. The front and back covers were a mauve color, with the spine cover having a darker tint. The cover was filled with stickers of a bow and arrow and a chicken. The pages are yellow in tone and are filled with sticky notes and tabs. "I like jottin' down theories and observations. You know, all about indigenous fauna, medicinal techniques, customs, and nuances of Amphibious species-based caste systems…"
"Boooooorrrrring!" said Polly.
"Sometimes, I even do drawings," Marcy said, showing Polly her drawing of the pollwog with the burger she'd just devoured burger. Only it was much more realistic.
Polly gasped, and her eyes sparkled. "It looks just like me."
"Wow!" Hop Pop said, further impressed with Marcy. He then turned his head to the human boy. "Frank, do you do that in your journal?"
"No, I mostly document our adventures, including some personal stuff," Frank said, pulling out his journal. The last time he'd written in it was about the cave drawing he saw in the mountains. Since then, he hadn't written about anything else.
"Oh, can I see it?" Marcy reached out to grab the journal, only to have her hand slapped.
"Don't just grab things that aren't yours," he said. The last thing he wanted was for Marcy, or worse, Anne, to discover the mural he saw. "You don't see me going through your diaries."
"Well, what about you, Anne?" Marcy looked at her best friend.
Anne, however, was too busy with two straws up her nose. "Look, guys! I'm a straw-lrus," she said with a big grin on her face. "Like a walrus, but with straws!"
Sprig laughed and slapped his knee. "What's a walrus," he asked.
The group was then approached by their server, who was holding up the bill, which was written on a wooden board. "Now, who should I give the bill to?" He took one glance at Anne and said, "Probably not you."
Marcy, after drawing Anne's "straw-lrus" in her journal, preaked up and said, "Oh! I'll take it! It's, oh, let me guess... 28 coppers?"
The server flipped the board around to show that it was, indeed, 28 coppers. "Right you are," he said with a knowing smile.
All of Marcy's friends oohed and clapped their hands in applause. This wasn't the first time Marcy came to this burger joint, and it wouldn't be the last time she guessed the bill amount correctly.
"Wow! Can you do math like that, too, you two," Hop Pop asked Anne, who blew the straws out her nostrils. One of them hit Hop Pop on the side of his head.
"Uh, you mean like with numbers and stuff," Anne asked.
"If I had a calculator, then yeah," Frank said.
Polly rolled over to their side of the table and said, "Can you imagine if Marcy got stuck with us instead of Frank and Anne? We'd be set for life!"
"HEY!"
Hop Pop scolded his granddaughter. "Hush, Polly. Think those thoughts, don't say them."
"Yo, that ain't better," Frank said. "And need I remind two of you that if it weren't for me, you three would be dead."
Anne frowned at him. "So what are you saying? That I'm the useless one in the group," she asked accusingly.
Frank, shocked by Anne's accusations, looked at her and said, "What?! No, I never said that. I—LOOK OUT!"
He jumped out of his chair, grabbing his scythe. Frank got in front of Anne, protecting her from an arrow shot at her, which he deflected with his iconic weapon. Sending it flipping up in the air. The arrow freaked out the frogs, who screamed in shock when it fell down and planted itself in the table.
"Someone's trying to kill us!" Hop Pop screamed.
Marcy, who didn't even seem scared or surprised at being shot at by an arrow, saw the arrow and smiled. "No, no. It's fine. It's just a message from the king," she said, seeing a note with a royal stamp rolled around the shaft of the arrow and tied with twine. Taking the note off, Marcy opened it and saw what was printed on it. "Oh, correction. It's a puzzle-gram from the king."
"What?" The others said.
Marcy turned the puzzle-gram around and showed what was on it. On the parchment paper were three different clues, represented by five drawings, the last two clues having two drawings each. The first clue was a tree with no leaves and two eyes, one closed and one open. The second clue was of a dragonfly, and below it was a compass rose with only west. The third clue was of a purple M and a triangle with a weird blue circle and three smaller triangles inside it pointing toward the center.
"He's basically hidden clues around the city, and when I collect them all, I get a message. Ah! It's so fun!"
"So let me get this straight," Frank said, pinching the bridge of his nose, "the king of Amphibia, your boss, delivers messages to you by shooting arrows at your head?"
"Well, yeah."
"And that's not concerning to you?"
"Not at all," Marcy said, turning over the message to look at the first clue. "Okay, this first symbol is a tree, so we should head towards Coral Park." She rolled up the map with an excited grin on her face. "Now come on, team. It's puzzle time!"
Frank smiled and followed Marcy, with Anne following behind him. Together, they ran off into the city to solve the puzzle the king gave them. Admittedly, he was excited to go on this quest. Not only would it be a fun time to spend with his friends and Anne, but also because it would be relaxing and relieve him of the stress he had been feeling from yesterday. Not only that, but he'll also get to spend time with Marcy, someone who he didn't treat right the first time he reunited with. This puzzle quest will give him an excellent chance to make up for that.
Meanwhile, Hop Pop picked up Polly and placed her on his head. "Come on, kids! This may be our most exciting adventure yet," he said.
"Yeah!" Sprig jumped out of his chair, not noticing the server walking back over to take the plates and clean the table.
"Hey, thanks for coming in," he said. "Would you like to join our customer loyalty program? You can get free gifts."
"Gifts?" Sprig asked with stars in his eyes.
Hop Pop turned to the waiter with bloodshot eyes. "Free?!"
Polly merely said, "Oh, no."
Marcy walked ahead of the others, while Frank and Anne walked side by side. The young boy took in all of the sights around him. Newtopia was unlike any city he'd seen in his life. It was vastly different from LA, in that there was so much ancient architecture and culture compared to the big city. Being in the capital was like being in an alien world.
Which he already was.
"Wow, this place truly is amazing," he said. However, when he didn't hear a response, Frank looked at the girl he loved. With her hands in her pocket, Anne looked down with a gloomy expression. "Anne. You okay?"
"Yeah, I guess," she said, not looking at him.
"Right," Frank said, not believing her. "So, mind telling me what all that was back there. You know I would never think that you were useless, right?"
Anne sighed and said, "I know, Frank. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. It's just…" Anne stopped, causing the boys to as well. "Marcy's always been the smart one in our group. I've always just felt kinda dumb around her."
"I mean, you kinda are."
"Hey!"
"Sorry. It's just… you've always kind of been lacking in the smart department, even when we were kids," Frank said. "But hasn't it always kind of been our thing? Marcy is the smart one. You're the dumb one. Sasha is the mastermind manipulator. And I'm the guy that's always having to be the moral compass."
"What if I don't always wanna be the dumb one?" Anne suggested. "What if I want to be as smart as Marcy?"
Frank thought for a moment. To make Anne as smart as Marcy would be like asking water and oil to mix. It's just not happening. But that doesn't mean that Anne hasn't used her brain in the past. The puzzle dungeon under the house being one such example.
"I think I have an idea," Frank said, gaining curious looks from Anne and Sprig. "If you really want to prove yourself, why not just solve the king's puzzle gram before Marcy?"
Anne's eyes widened as a smile appeared on her face. "Yeah! It'll prove I'm just as smart as Marcy!"
"I highly doubt that'll happen," Frank said, as Marcy was freakishly smart. "But it could prove that you're a master of puzzles."
Hearing this had Anne pondering. She really wanted to be as smart as Marcy, but Frank might have a point. Becoming a master of puzzled could show that she's just as brilliant, and doing so wouldn't be so hard. "Well, I did get us out of that puzzle dungeon that one time," Anne said. "And it's just a stepping stone for me to becoming Marcy levels of smartness."
"Or you don't have to reach that level of…smartness?" Frank said, not even sure if it was a word.
"Oh, I am, Frank. And I'm going to start with solving this puzzle!" Anne shouted. "Mission 'Prove I'm not a dumdum,' engage!"
Anne charged after Marcy, only to run face-first into a hanging sign, which knocked her down on her back. Frank, seeing it happen, sighed to himself. Thinking how the girl he loved really was a fool. But, she was his fool.
A minute later, the three human friends arrived at Coral Park. It was as big as the playgrounds from the schools back home; the only difference was there was no jungle gym or tetherball. Instead, all it contained were pink and orange coral, and in the center sat a statue of a newt named Ezra Brackish looking through a telescope.
"Here it is, guys. Coral Park!" Marcy pulled out the puzzle and looked at the first clue.
Anne looked at Frank. "Go on," he said, giving her a supportive grin and two thumbs up. "You can do this."
She nodded and walked up behind Marcy. "So, one eye open and one closed," Anne said, pointing to the first symbol. "Hmm... Ooh!"
The other two humans watched as Anne ran over to one of the trees. "Uh, Anne, what are you doing," asked Frank
"What if we aren't supposed to look at the trees?" Anne placed her face against the tree. "What if we're supposed to listen to them?"
Well, at least she's trying.
However, looking at the tree Anne was rubbing her face on, Frank noticed something about it. There were yellow lines on it in the shape of an R cut in half down the middle. And it wasn't just that tree. Multiple trees had yellow on them.
"Hey, Anne, step away for a moment," Frank said, walking over to the tree. Anne stepped away, as requested, and the young boy dragged to finger on the yellow. Immediately, he felt the wet, liquid texture of the surface, and when he pulled his hand away, it stuck to his skin. "It's paint!"
"Maybe someone likes painting trees," Anne said.
Frank raised an eyebrow. "If that were true, why make it look like an R," he asked.
"That's right!" Marcy exclaimed with a grin, happy to see Frank was figuring it out. She then acted like she was thinking hard. "Hmm, I was also thinking this statue of Ezra Brackish is looking through a telescope. He's got one eye open and one eye closed, right?"
Then, in a surprising move that seemed completely out of nowhere, Marcy climbed the back of the statue and took off the hat, tossing it to the ground, where it broke. Underneath the hat, a telescope lens was revealed.
"Gotcha!" Marcy looked through the telescope. She saw not only Frank and Anne, looking at her with confused expressions, but also the other trees with yellow paint. Together, they formed the BRING.
"'Bring'," she said aloud. "So that's the first part of the message. Brilliant!" Marcy pulled away from the statue and pulled out the puzzle gram and a pen. However, she ended up falling off and hitting the ground on her back.
Frank and Anne walked over to Marcy, who was just fine. She chuckled and checked out the first clue.
"So the next clue is...Oh! I recognize this. Come on, gang. Let's motor!" Marcy got up and ran off. Going past the two love birds.
"Huh, okay…that was fast," Frank said. "Maybe you'll have better luck on the next one?"
Anne got pumped up to get smart again. "Yeah, I can do this! Let's go get that next clue," she said.
However, the moment between the two of them was interrupted by the voice of a little girl. Looking in her direction, Anne saw a young Axolotl looking up a tree. "Goblin! Come on, girl!" The little girl reached up. Both humans looked up to see a kill-a-pillar up in the coral tree. "Goblin, get down from there!"
Anne, seeing that the young girl needed help, and having been in similar situations before, smiled and walked over to the little girl. "Don't worry. I got you."
Both the girl and Frank watched from the ground as Anne climbed up the tree. Making it to the branch Goblin was on, the Thai girl gently grabbed the caterpillar, who meowed cutely. With the cat in her arms, Anne did a backflip and landed on the ground in front of Frank and the little girl.
"Thanks, lady," said the girl, taking her cat back.
"No worries," Anne said. "I actually have one just like that back home. But with fewer legs."
Frank smiled at Anne before nudging her. "We better get going. The last thing we need is to have Marcy disappear on us," he said, taking off down the road.
"Whoop, gotta go!" Anne quickly followed after Frank. "Don't let that thing grow up."
"Catch you later!" The girl said, making her cat wave his paw as he let out a cute meow.
A few minutes later, the three were standing in front of the Newtopia museum, which was a very small building with some vines hanging off it and a clock over the door. The same dragonfly that was on the piece of paper was on top of the museum's roof, serving as the weather vane of the building.
"Hmmmm," mused the three humans.
Marcy pulled out the puzzle-gram and looked at the clue. "Why the 'W'," she wondered. "I mean, what's that supposed to mean?"
Frank lightly slapped her upside the head. "It means West, Marcy," he said. "Hasn't anyone looked at a map?!"
"Let me take this one, Mar-Mar," Anne said, taking the puzzle-gram from her. She took a look at the second clue. "Okay. Hmm."
However, Anne's brain strained to make sense of the clue. Did it mean a dragonfly was going west? That to the west, there was a dragonfly? What did a dragonfly have to do with anything?! It was too much for Anne that she started to hallucinate and saw the dragonfly drawing turning its head to look at her with judgment in its incest eyes. "You'll never solve me," the dragonfly said. "You will forever be nothing more than a dumbass!"
"Ah!" Anne yelled out in shock and horror. She looked to her left and saw the others still standing there and looking at her, wondering what the heck she was freaking out about.
Trying to save face, Anne tried to act sophisticated. "I mean, oh... I see," she said. Unfortunately, the pressure was too much, and she ran away. "Hey, I gotta go to the bathroom! BRB!"
Frank became concerned about Anne and wanted to go after her. The reason he didn't was because he wasn't sure if she really did need to use the bathroom. "Should we…go see if she's okay?"
"Nah, she's like this when she needs to use the restroom," Marcy said, waving off his concerns.
"Uh, okay," Frank said, not completely buying it. However, not wanting to be caught in an awkward conversation if Anne really was using the restroom, he decided to just stay with Marcy. "So, wanna tell me the story behind the crossbow arm?"
"I don't see why not?" Marcy said, deploying the arms of the crossbow.
Anne was in a complete panic. She ran away from her friends, making them worry about her, all because her dumbness couldn't handle the pressure of solving the problem. Stopping in the middle of a street, she looked around while repeatedly stepping into the same spot.
"Okay...Gotta find help," Anne said, panting and looking around for anyone who could help her decipher the puzzle. That's when she spotted her potential savior.
Sitting on a bench all alone was an orange newt with several spots on her body, gray hair tied up in a bun with a knitting needle going through the bun, and wearing thick glasses. For clothing, she sported a dusty rose scarf, pale olive sweater, and pale purple pants with a patch near her bum.
"Aha!" Anne grinned. "An old person! Old people love puzzles." She ran across the street, looking like a really shady person, snuck up to the side of the woman who was trying to solve a crossword puzzle. "Psst, hey. Wanna solve a puzzle?"
"Ooh!" The newt threw away her puzzle and took the new one from Anne. "Looks like a juicy one. Pull up some bench, dear. The name's Doris."
"Anne," the Thai girl introduced herself, sitting down on the bench, and pointing to the dragonfly. "Okay, any idea what this symbol has to do with the museum?"
"Oh! My son, Harris, used to work at the museum," Doris said. "Oh, wait, no. Harris worked at the library. Dusty worked at the museum. Or was it Dave?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Anne said and held up her hands, "hold on. How many sons do you have?" Her answer came when Doris opened her wallet, and a stupidly long line of photos spilled out. "Whoa, damn girl."
The longer Anne stayed gone, the antsier Frank's nerves became. Like a dog waiting impatiently for his master. He paced back and forth while Marcy sat on the ground with her legs crossed, looking closely at the west wall of the museum.
"I'm gonna go find her," Frank said.
He turned to leave when Marcy stopped him by saying: "She's fine. Anne's just taking care of business."
"But what if she isn't," Frank asked. "What if she's off doing something else other than taking a dump or piss?"
"Huh, so this is what Anne's like when she's worried about me," Marcy said, standing up.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Frank, remember you told me about how much Anne would worry about me?" Marcy pointed out to the Hispanic boy. "How she would always take it upon herself to protect me from getting hurt?"
"That's because your clumsy ass made you prone to accidents," Frank argued with Marcy. "With Anne, it's different. She needs me to look after her because she's a dumbass, which I love about her—HATE! I mean, I hate that about her."
Marcy's genius mind allowed her to put together any puzzle known to man and solve almost any problem. And this puzzle didn't take more than that one spill-up from Frank for her to put the pieces together. "Oh. My. God! Franky! You're in love with Anne!" The Taiwanese girl let out a girly squeal. "Aw, I can't believe it!"
"No! No!" Frank frantically tried to get her to stop while looking around in a panic. The only thing that would make things worse is if Anne appeared out of nowhere and heard the two. "I don't like Anne like that!"
"Nah, you totally like her. Eeeeeeee! I've got the perfect shipping name! Franne!" Marcy said, despite the fact that it was the same friendship name Frank and Anne already used. But that didn't matter to her as she girlishly squealed a second time. "Fixing our friendship and getting you two together? This is so perfect!"
"When you shut the fuck up, pendeja (dumbass)!" Frank, with a big blush on his face, covered Marcy's mouth. "Okay, yes! I'm in love with Anne. I've been in love with her for a long time. I loved her ever since we came to Amphibia. But the last thing I need is to ruin the friendship we're already building."
Marcy pulled his arm away from her mouth. "But, Frank. You're in love with Anne."
"I know! I'm the one who has to deal with these feelings."
"And that's a good thing," Marcy said with a kind smile. "Frank, you should tell Anne."
"I can't do that!"
"Why?"
"Because there's no way Anne likes me like that. She only sees me as a friend," Frank said vehemently. At least, that's what he said to himself. "Look—can…can we just figure out this puzzle and get Anne so we can leave?"
"Oh, I already figured it out."
Frank paused and looked at Marcy, his brain trying to rewire itself. "You…You have?"
"Yep!"
"W-When?!"
"Just now," Marcy said, running up to the west wall of the museum. It looked as though something large had rammed inside into it, smashing and almost creating a hole. However, all it left were cracks in the bricks. "I knew this looked familiar the long I looked at it."
She handed Frank a map of the city. "What's this?"
"Hold it up!" Marcy said, grabbing his arms and forcing them up, aligning the map with the wall. "The lines between the bricks of this west side wall of the museum match up perfectly with the street grid of Newtopia, which puts us right about…" Marcy walked up to the wall. "...here!"
She pulled out a brick from the wall and showed it to Frank. Lowering his arms, the young boy was shocked to see the brick had a blue sign on it with gold accents and the word "Me" written in gold on it.
"'Me'… 'Bring... me…'" Marcy gasped upon putting the first two words of the puzzle together. "Only one clue left to go!"
Marcy ran off again while Frank was still trying to understand the girl's thought process and puzzle-solving abilities. How on earth did she know that the statue's telescope was actually a working telescope? And how the hell did she know that the street grid of a map matched with cracks in the wall of a building? "Okay, I swear that girl has a legitimate superpower," Frank said, ironically because of his own powers. He then ran off to go find Anne.
"Well, if Dusty is upset about what Buster said, he should just tell him so," the Thai girl said to Doris, having completely changed her focus. As Doris talked about her sons, their lives, and their relationships, the more Anne became invested in the family's drama. So much so that she'd forgotten about the puzzle-gram entirely and was offering advice to the old woman. At the same time, painting her nails.
"Mmm-hmm." Doris completely agreed with her.
The conversation was interrupted when Frank walked over and said, "Hey, Anne. So... Marcy figured out the second puzzle."
Anne gaped and slapped her head. "Crap! The puzzle! Sorry, Doris. Gotta run," she said, grabbing the gram and running away with Frank. "It was nice talking to you."
"You too, Anne," said Doris. "Don't forget my offer to set you up with one of my sons."
"Doris, stop it!" Anne laughed.
Frank looked at her strangely. "What was that about?"
"Nothing." Anne pointed ahead. "Oh, look, there's Marcy."
The two best friends caught up with Marcy and ran alongside her.
"Hey, Anne. Glad you could catch up. Take a look at the final clue," Marcy instructed her best friend with excitement in her voice, now noticing Anne's dejected expression as she opened the map. "It's referring to the big bridge downtown. Come on!"
"How do you know?" Frank asked, but Marcy didn't answer. Too focused on solving the puzzle.
At the same time, the three humans rushed past the same restaurant the three humans left the Plantars. Both Grandson and Grandfather had gorged themself on plate after plate of food, while Polly could only watch as they looked at what they could order next.
"Hop Pop, Spring, Polly! We're goin' to the bridge!" Frank yelled as he passed them.
"Take me with you!" Polly called out for help, only for the humans to leave her with her idiot family.
With both of their mouths filled with food and their cheeks puffing out to hold more, Hop Pop showed Sprig the menu. "Sprig, look! Just 987 more lunches, and we get a free suit of armor!
"What are you waiting for, old man? Stop talking and start ordering!" Sprig yelled and threw his fists up.
Polly merely groaned in annoyance.
Back with Frank, the Hispanic boy ran alongside Anne as Marcy took the lead ahead of them. "Okay, Anne," he said, "one clue left."
Anne sighed deeply. "Yeah, and Marcy'll probably solve it before we get there."
"Hey, don't you give up on me," Frank said. "So she's good at puzzles. That doesn't mean she's smart and you're dumb."
"Thanks, dude," Anne said, blushing at how caring Frank was towards her. However, that quickly ended when she looked ahead and came to a halt. "OH, WHAT THE HELL?"
Across the water was the same bridge Marcy was talking about, and on it was a giant, golden statue of Marcy. She was looking ahead with a smile on her face, holding a book in her left hand while her right hand held a large drafting compass as if it were a mighty sword. Making her look like a dauntless warrior of math.
"Oh, yeah, yeah. I know," Marcy said, walking up to the two. "I made a few suggestions on how to increase the weight limit, and they kinda, like, named it after me. Now, come on! Let's see where this triangle fits in."
She ran off again. Frank and Anne stared at her blankly. "Is it wrong to say that I hate her for having a better life here," asked the boy.
"Yes," Anne said. "Maybe not."
"Dammit, Marcy." Frank sighed in frustration. "Okay! Okay, so she designed a bridge. That doesn't mean…"
"Please stop."
"Yeah, okay."
Anne sighed a sad sigh. That's it, she's giving up. It's like Frank said, it's impossible to be as smart as Marcy. Might as well expect that. "Why don't you go ahead? I think I need a moment alone," she said, turning and walking away.
"Hey, wait," Frank said, grabbing her hand. "Please, don't do this, Anne. You've never given up on me, and I'm not giving up on you."
Anne looked at him and smiled sadly. "You may not give up on me," she said, gently taking his hand and removing it. "But I am."
Frank watched in shock and sadness as Anne turned around and walked away with her hands in her skirt's pockets and her head hanging down. "Uh, okay," he said, his heart broke seeing her so down. However, there was nothing he could possibly say to help Anne. "Just holler if you need something."
He got no response back from the Thai girl he loved. Sighing in failure, he turned and walked away to join Marcy.
Finding a bench next to a food cart, Anne groaned and plopped herself down. Anne looked back at her crush. She knew that he meant well and loved him for it, but there was nothing he could do to help her. Anne just had to face the fact. She wasn't ever going to be smart enough and just wanted to sit and do nothing.
However, the wind blew through the area, taking with it a few of the food cart's paper trays. "What? My trays!" The owner exclaimed in shock.
Seeing the trays, Anne quickly got up. "I got 'em!" She yelled, catching one of the trays with one hand. And then she caught another one with her other hand. The last two trays were caught by having them land in the ones Anne had. Once she had all of them, the Thai girl stacked them all together and walked back to the food cart and its owner.
The amphibian was a female light purple axolotl with dark purple fins and dark purple splotches on her head, arms, and tail. She wore a white shirt underneath a stained blue apron with two embroidered purple gnachos, and a tan colored skirt. She was also barefoot.
"Thank you, sweetie!" The owner said with gratitude as Anne placed the trays on the cart. The axolotl then grabbed one of them and filled it with purple-colored nachos with cheese and jalapeños slices. "Here, have some gnatchos on the house."
"Thanks!" Anne happily took the nachos, or gnatchos. "My name's Anne, by the way."
"I'm Gertie. Nice to meet ya."
Anne looked down at her gnatchos, thinking that Frank would have loved to have some. However, thinking of her best friend only dampened her heart, and she sat down with a sigh.
"Something got you down, Anne," asked Gertie, leaning on her cart.
"Have you ever had a friend who's so smart," Anne said, "they make you feel dumb?"
Gertie said, "Honey, this is Newtopia. Everyone here's a genius. And then there's me, with my dumb old gnatcho cart."
"What? Gertie, don't say that. You're an independent businesswoman. You've got it goin' on!"
Gertie chuckled. "Oh, aren't you a sweet one!"
Anne giggled softly and looked away for a second. "Wow, and I thought Frank was supposed to be the one cheering me up," she said, blushing.
The red forming on the human's cheeks got the attention of the axolotl, who gave a knowing smirk and leaned forward. "Oh, and who might that be," she asked teasingly.
"Oh, it's…just this boy I like," Anne said, but a knowing hum from Gertie had her telling the whole truth. "Okay, I really like him. He's been trying to help me out all day with my problems, never once giving up on me. And all I've done is let him down."
"Oh, honey, don't think like that. If that boy is as special as you think he is, then he's still going to be supporting you even if you fail," Gertie said.
"Yeah," Anne moaned. "I just wish I could show him that I could be as smart as my friend."
The cook tapped her finger on her chin. "Well, you wanna know my trick," she asked. "Fake it till you make it. If you act like you're smart, everyone assumes you are."
Anne looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Really? That works," she asked, stuffing her face with gnatchos. For most of her life in school, the Thai girl had tried to fake it when it came to teachers asking her if she understood the assignment and the lesson. Of course, Anne did not understand what she was supposed to be doing, having fallen asleep in the middle of class or goofing off. She would, however, try to repeat what the introductions were or convey the lesson being taught.
Of course, they would all end in failure, and Anne would have been given detention, which, looking back now, showed how much of a bad student she really was. But to hear faking it had worked for Gertie, Anne put into question whether she could do it with the puzzle.
"Mm-hmm. I don't know the first thing about cooking, and look at me. I'm a famous chef!" Gertie proclaimed. "… Well, I'm a chef… Well, I'm in the food business."
"Hey, Anne!" The two girls turned their heads to the right and saw Frank running over with a smile on his face. When he reached the girl, he stopped and said, "Anne, good news. Marcy and I are looking at the last clue, and we're stumped. She can't figure out what it means!"
Anne's eyes widened in shock. It couldn't be true. Marcy, the smartest girl in school and puzzle-solving master, was stuck on a puzzle. It was almost impossible to comprehend for the Thai girl, who'd seen her friend solve ten Rubik's cubes in a row in less than 5 minutes. But the look in the boy's dark eyes told her what she needed to know. He was not lying; Marcy really was stuck, and it had Anne wondering if she could even help.
Perhaps this puzzle didn't need a clever mind to solve it, but a dumb one. A mind as dumb as hers. Anne looked to Gertie, and the axolotl gave her a thumbs up. Cueing the human girl to set her gnatchos down on the bench and take off running with Frank.
The boy led Anne to Marcy, who stood by herself at a railing overlooking the sea. The map was set on the metal bar in front of her as the Taiwanese girl mused and pondered over the meaning of the symbol.
"All right. What do we got here?" Anne said as she stood between Marcy and Frank and looked over the symbol. "Hmm. Okay. Easy."
That was a big fat lie. Anne had no idea what the hell she was looking at. But just like in school, now that she said she understood the clue, she was standing up in the middle of the classroom and faking her answers. The difference now was that she wasn't just outside the classroom; Anne actually cared about the question being asked. And instead of being watched by other students, she was watched by her two best friends. But now wasn't the time to think about that. It was time to fake it.
"So, a triangle has three sides, right? Three rhymes with, er... 'tea.' You brew tea with water, and there's water in, uh…" Anne trailed off, trying to find the next thing to say. That's when she spotted a coverless manhole with barriers with flashing orange mushrooms, police tape tied between them, and an orange clam "cautious" sign standing beside it. "The sewer! Let's go down there."
"Uh, are you sure about that, Anne?" Frank asked, not completely convinced by her guess.
"I think it's a great idea," Marcy said, running over to the manhole with Anne behind her. Seeing that they weren't going to listen to him and already had their minds set, Frank sighed and followed the girls.
One by one, the human kids climbed down into the sewer system. First went down Anne, then Marcy, and finally Frank. When his sandals came in contact with the stone walkway, he ceased holding his breath and prepared himself for the foul smell that his nostrils were inevitably going to be invaded with. However, as he looked around the sewer tunnel, he found that it wasn't as strong as he thought it was going to be.
The tunnels of the sewer system, as to be expected from an old city like Newtopia, were constructed using stone bricks and concrete. Barnacles were seen attached to the walls, and coral grew from the cracks of the tunnel. The water that ran through the sewer was surprisingly clean and had very little trash in it.
"Huh, you know, this sewer's shockingly clean," Frank said with a smile as he followed the girls up the walkway. Going deeper into the tunnel.
"There's actually a reason for that," Marcy said. "I…"
Anne and Frank both said in droned tones, "Rehauled the sewer system?"
"How'd you know that?"
"Call it a hunch," Frank said, rolling his eyes. At this point in the day, with Marcy showing off how perfect she is, he wouldn't be surprised if she told him she made a goddamn rocket powered by McDonald's french fries.
"Hey! Check that out," Anne said, pointing to a valve wheel that was connected to a pipe sticking out of the wall. "That looks just like the circle in the clue…Kinda. We obviously have to turn it."
"Uh, Anne, hold on! You don't know what that'll do," Frank said in worry. However, it was too late. Anne had already spun the wheel, and the sound of the sewer's mechanisms clicked from a large pipe before water poured into the tunnel from it.
However, it wasn't just water that poured into the tunnel's river. Coming out of the pipe was a massive alligator that was over three times the size of a saltwater crocodile and as tall as an SUV.
"Speak of the devil!" Marcy exclaimed with a smile before Frank slammed his hand on her mouth to get her to shut the hell up. As he and Anne watched the gator disappear into the water, eating trash, they pulled Marcy to the wall, wanting to be as far away from the animal as possible.
"We've gotta get out of here," Frank said, with Anne nodding.
"What? How come," Marcy asked.
"Marcy, that's an alligator the size of a truck!" Frank hissed out in a whisper. "Why are you so calm?"
"Well, it's because he's one of my improvements!"
Frank and Anne looked at her as if she'd grown two heads. "What," asked the Thai girl.
"Would you guys believe that in addition to eating live meat, these babies love eating trash?" Marcy told the two, not expressing any kind of worry or concern for the danger they were in. Frank and Anne glanced back at the water and saw the alligator's eyes popping out of the water. "Thankfully, though, these guys have really bad eyesight. But are also really good hearers and smellers, so…"
Frank said, "Which means we gotta be really, really quiet and leave."
Anne nodded in agreement…
…then lets out a loud fart. That same fart echoed all around the three humans and across the tunnels of the sewer. The alligator's eyes turned to her. Then it dove under the water.
"ANNE!"
"I thought it would be funny!" Anne wailed, only to scream when the alligator jumped out of the water and tried chowing down on her. She jumped back before it could, and Frank quickly swung Hellcat's Claw down on the top of its jaw with three hacks. Making blood spill from it as the gator roared in agony before it pulled itself back into the water.
"Run, you idiots!" Frank yelled, grabbing Anne and Marcy's hands before running down the walkway.
They made it to the ladder when the gator jumped out of the water again. Frank slashed at the gator again, cutting into its chin and knocking it back into the water.
"Get up the ladder! I'll hold it off!" He yelled at the girls. Frank turned back to the water and got into a pose. "Red powers! Activate!"
Frank waited for his red powers to come to life. However, as the girls looked at him, waiting for the red glow to appear, nothing happened.
"Uh, Leif?" Frank called out to the specter of the frog in his powers. "You gonna help or what?" The gator jumped out again, forcing Frank to jump back to avoid getting eaten. "Anne, get Marcy out!"
"I'm trying!" Anne yelled from the top of the ladder with Marcy behind her. She had faith in her friend's abilities and knew Frank would not die.
However, they ran into a problem. Someone had put the cover of the manhole on, blocking the kids' means of escape. Anne tried to push the cover up, but it was no use.
"Holy crap," Anne yelled, "that's heavy!"
As the gator launched itself at Frank, and the young boy jumped good and landed on the beast's back, Anne heard the sound of a familiar voice coming from the outside.
"Gnatchos! Get your gnatchos!"
"Gertie? Is that you!?" Anne called out to her new friend.
The gator thrashed around as Frank tried holding onto the top of its massive head. However, when it rammed its head into the tunnel, making the tunnel shack, it crushed Frank against it, knocking him off his focus and making him drop his scythe. "No!" He yelled and reached out to grab it. However, the scythe fell away just inches from his fingertips. Luckily, it landed on the walkway. However, Frank was still trying to hold onto the alligator. If he were thrown off it, the predator would easily bite down and eat him. "Anne! Hurry!"
"Gertie! It's me, Anne. I need help!" Anne's pleas were heard by the nacho cart woman, who instantly recognized the girl's voice and knew she was in danger.
"Anne?!" Gertie yelled as she rushed to the manhole cover. "Don't worry, kiddo. I got ya!" The axolotl grabbed the metal covered and began to pull with all her strength.
As Anne struggled with Gertie to open the sewer drain, with Marcy waiting, the Thai girl looked back at Frank and saw the Hispanic was struggling to hold on for much longer. She looked away as the gator continued to thrash and slam Frank into the walls, hurting the boy she loved. Unable to do anything, until she saw Hellcat's Claw.
"Mar Mar! Take over!" Anne ordered before jumping off the ladder and falling down over Marcy.
"Wait, Anne!" Marcy yelled but couldn't do anything to stop her.
Anne landed on the ground and ran over to the scythe, picking it up and turning to the gator. "Frank! Give me an opening!"
Still concussion, despite the pain he was in, Frank grunted as he reached out and grabbed the nostrils of the gator. Hopping up and planting his feet in between the eyes of the beast, he let out a guttural roar as he pulled back with all his might, forcing the gator to rear back as he forced its jaws open.
Anne then took the initiative and jumped at the creature, slashing it across its throat. As blood spattered from its gaping wounds onto Anne and the water, the gator let out a final death roar before it stumbled and fell into the water. Frank got off before its body splashed into the running waters of the sewer. Its blood turned the water red as body crushes looked at one another, panting heavily and covered in blood.
Then, Marcy and Gertie finally got the drain open. "Got it!" The axolotl exclaimed and looked down into the sewer. Here, grab my arm—whoa."
Marcy looked back and was just as surprised by the fact that Frank and Anne killed the gator with such brutality. Especially her gal pal, who she would never have imagined killing anything so big.
Frank and Anne looked up at the two girls as Anne waved. "Uh…hey, Gertie. You got any water?"
A moment later, Marcy and Gertie helped Anne pull Frank out of the sewer. He was hurt, but not too badly, despite the brute way the alligator tried to get him off. They then sat him down and allowed Marcy to wrap a bandage around his head, nursing his wounds as Anne stood a few feet away from the two friends, talking with Gertie.
"Anne, what in the world compelled you to go down there," Gertie exclaimed as a bus behind them drove away, having dropped off Doris.
"Anne? Is that you?" The elderly woman asked. At the same time, the girl Anne met in the park walked over with her caterpillar in hand.
"Did you lose your pet too?" She wondered as her little Goblin meowed.
Anne chuckled a bit, but her smile faded as she said, "No, I tried to fake it until I made it with this stupid puzzle." Anne pulled out the puzzle gram and waved it around. "But…I just ended up getting my friends in danger."
"Wait," Gertie said, "that's what this was all about? You were so jealous about your friend being so much smarter than you over a puzzle?"
"GERTIE!" Anne screamed and threw her arms up. However, it was too late.
"What?" Anne's eyes went wide as she turned around to see Marcy looking at her with a worried expression.
Gertie looked between the two friends and gasped. "Oh! Shoot, was I not supposed to say that? I'm just going to go…over to my stand…" She quickly shuffled away.
Marcy stood up, helping Frank to his feet as well, as she asked, "Anne, is that true? Why would you be jealous of me?"
"Give her a break, Marbles," Frank said in Anne's defense. "It's not her fault she feels like a dummy around you."
"No! It's not about that," Anne said loudly. "Well, it is. It's…It's everything. You're so much smarter than me, Mar Mar, Sasha's so much cooler than me, and even Frank's so much braver than me. I'm always in your guys' shadow because I'm everything you guys aren't."
"Come on, Anne. You're plenty brave," Frank said with a gentle smile as he walked up to the girl he loved. "I mean, you just jumped down a ladder and slashed the throat of an alligator just to save me."
"He's right, Anne," said Marcy as she smiled at the girl. "Besides, I'm jealous of you."
Greatly confused, Anne asked, "Huh? What for?"
"Yeah, what for?" Frank asked as well.
"You get along with people so well," Marcy said, gesturing to the three people Anne met today, who smiled at the young girl. "Heck, the Plantars adopted you and would do anything for you. And do I even need to mention Frank, a boy who would have never talked to you and me again? He gave you a second chance to be friends! Yeah, sure, I'm good at solving puzzles and calculating the check, but you're amazing at making connections." Marcy looked away, blushing shyly. "Me, I have trouble looking people in the eye sometimes."
Anne looked at her friend in amazement before turning to Frank. "Remember what I said to you at the Frog of the Year party," Frank asked, placing a hand on Anne's shoulder. "I was a broken person, and in some ways, still am, and if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been able to find my way back to who I was. Just like me, you're not the same person you were when you came to this world."
Anne blushed shyly and looked away from him. "Is it wrong to say I wish I were that same girl?"
"Yes! You were a crappy person."
"Dude!" Anne yelled, blushing brighter and making Frank and Marcy laugh.
The conversation came to an end when the Plantars, who'd been absent for most of the chapter, finally showed up. Polly was her usual sense. However, her brother and grandfather were clad in shiny armored suits.
"Whoa, what happened to you two," Frank asked.
"Don't ask." Polly groaned.
"So, you guys figured out the puzzle," asked Sprig.
"Nah, but with you guys here, we'll have more hands to help us," Frank said with a smile. "What do you say, Plantars? Who wants to solve a puzzle?"
"Yay!" The frogs said. They were about to run off to try and solve the puzzle when Gertie stopped them, holding a bowl of her gnatchos.
"Wait, you're the Plantars," she asked.
The frogs looked at one another. "Uh, yeah," Polly said.
"Well, good news! I've got a travel of my gnatchos that has your name on it," she said, handing Frank the gnatchos.
"Aw, thanks, Gertie," Anne said.
However, the axolotl said, "No, seriously, the Plantar's name is at the bottom."
"Huh," Frank said, plucking out of the gnatchos. "Wonder why."
Anne was confused and wondered the same thing. That was until she looked at Frank and gasped. "Whoa! Wait, don't eat that," she said, grabbing Frank's arm and stopping him from eating the chip. Anne stared at the purple chip, which had cheese on its corners and a slice of jalapeno in the middle. She then pulled out the puzzle gram and compared the chip with the last symbol. "Look! The symbol... it's a gnatcho! Frank, empty that tray!"
"Okay, you said don't eat the chip," Frank argued. "Now you're saying to eat the chip?"
"Just do it!"
Frank ate the chip, then stuffed his face with the rest of the gnatchos. Once all of the nachos were gone, with cheeks stuffed with the snacks, he looked into the tray and saw the same sign he and Marcy found on the brick. Only this time, the sign had the name of his and Anne's adopted frog family.
"That means the message is…," Marcy pulled out the brick and a piece of paper she wrote the first answer on. She put the clues together to form the answer to the puzzle. "'Bring me the Plantars.' Oh, guys, we've been summoned! And you solved the puzzle gram, Anne!
"Self-esteem boost and an audience with the ruler of this world?" Anne exclaimed, pumping his fist. "Win-win, baby!"
Frank, however, wasn't so happy. "So you're telling me that the king of Amphibia, instead of just sending a random messenger, shot an arrow at us, made us go on this long ass scavenger hunt, just tell us THAT HE WANTS TO MEET US?! AND THAT'S JUST OKAY WITH YOU?!" He yelled at Marcy.
"Well, yeah, but that's just how he is," Marcy said, as if it wasn't a problematic thing. "He likes to give people puzzles."
"I have some concerns about the type of ruler we're about to meet and entrust our return home," Frank said.
"Maybe he's just quirky, Frank," Anne offered. "Just like everyone back in Wartwood."
"That didn't make me feel better, Anne!" Frank exclaimed as he followed Marcy and Anne, along with the Plantars following behind.
Before long, they made it to the very large, three-tiered Newtopia Castle. As he walked to the entrance behind the others, Frank looked at the massive structure at the top. It was hard to describe what its appearance reminded him of, but it was also like a navigation tool.
"Remember the Mural," said a voice.
"Leif?" Frank gasped and turned around, expecting to see the little frog woman standing behind him, giving him cryptic messages and annoying him.
However, there were no frogs behind him.
"Hey," Anne said upon noticing he'd stopped a few feet away. "You coming?"
"Huh? Y-Yeah, I'm coming," he said before running to catch up.
A few minutes after entering, Marcy led Frank, Anne, and the Plantars through the grand halls of the castle. Amazing the five travelers as they laid eyes on the extravagate and luxurious decore. "Dang, girl," Anne said as they walked to the doors of the throneroom. "This is where you've been hanging out this whole time?"
"I wouldn't say I 'hang out' here," Marcy said, using air quotes, "but yes ! Staying at the castle has been awesome!"
"Wow, I can't believe we're here!" Sprig said as he carried Polly on his head.
Polly added with equal excitement, "And that we're about to meet the king of Amphibia."
"Wow, just look at this place," Hop Pop said, feeling more out of place in the palace than Frank did. "Am I dressed okay? Should I have worn my silk ascot? I'll go back and get it." He started running to the door when Marcy caught up and stopped him.
"Hey, hey. Don't stress, guys. This is no big deal," she said, only for the doors to the throneroom to be unlocked and opened. With Lady Olivia coming in and giving the travelers a stern expression.
"Okay, frog family. You're about to meet King Andrias," Lady Olivia said as she approached the frogs, giving them a deadly serious expression. "This is a big deal."
They all gulped.
"But, before we go see the King." Olivia turned Frank and held out her hand. "Franklin, I'll need to take your weapon. You'll get it back once you're done meeting with the King."
Frank glared at the newt, no way intending to give her his weapons. He was about to protest but saw Anne encouraging him to let it go with a smile that said to him that everything was going to be okay. With a sigh, Frank pulled it out and gave it to Lady Olivia.
Taking the legendary weapon in hand, she looked at it with intrigue as she said, "Hmm... fascinating."
"Yeah," Frank said, "and no funny business. I want it back when this is over."
She looked back at the boy with a raised eyebrow, then said, "And you will. Now, if you all follow me." She handed the weapon to a guard, who turned with the newt and followed beside her as she entered the chamber.
As Frank and the others walked into the throneroom, they could almost hear angelic voices singing. Just like the rest of the castle, the chamber was lavish and beautiful, with marble columns with snakes coiled around them with blue coral sprouting from the top. The windows were stained glass, giving the impression of a church, and positioned in the room were armored newt guards. The carpet on which they walked was shiny blue, patterned in dragon scales, with golden edges.
"May I present to you Andrias Leviathan, Lord of Amphibia. Peacekeeper of a thousand years and the first of his name," Lady Olivia presented with a bow, stepping aside so as to allow the group to meet Amphibia's ruler.
The moment Frank laid eyes on the king, his heart sank at the sight of a large newt with bluish skin, a lighter underbelly, and pale yellow eyes. He was so tall, even when sitting on his coral throne, that he towered over Frank, Anne, his armored guards, and Tartarus. His body was stocky and muscular, with white hair and a full beard, along with crow's feet. Andrias was clad in a dark purple metal suit of armor that had an X-shaped battle mark on the left abdomen over a lighter-colored shirt with cuffs similar to a Victorian aristocrat. Adorning his head was a crown that was great in size, with a brown coloration and a darker shade of it on its base. The king's shoulders were covered with pauldrons shaped like snail shells; the right pauldron had a smaller X-shaped battle mark on it. He also wore a gold snake belt and a purple and yellow tunic.
As the sun shone down from the stained glass behind the king, Andrias glared down at the humans. Staring up at the giant newt, Frank's face expressed not wonder and amazement like the others, but fear. His mind flashed back to the mural in the cave. The prophesized final battle that was said to lead him to his death was against a monster-sized amphibian. Despite the fact it was a giant frog, Andrias was still an amphibian and was absolutely massive. Gulping, the Hispanic boy reached behind his waist and grabbed the handle of his knife while his poncho hid his arm.
The moment Andrias did something he didn't like, Frank was going to be ready.
However, instead of attacking him and his friends, King Andrias did something he never expected him to be.
"Hello, Plantar family!" He shouted with a big smile on his face, making Frank and the others gasp as he laughed heartily. "Oh, bring it in, you guys. Bring it in," he said, standing up from his throne.
Hop Pop grabbed Polly from Sprig's head and placed her on the ground. "Quick, kids, bow," he whispered. They did, only for the three frogs to be picked up by the king and pulled into a bone-crushing hug.
"It's so good to meet you finally!" King Andrias exclaimed as he rubbed the frog into his bread before setting them back down on their butts.
Polly grinned and proclaimed, "I love this guy!"
King Andrias laughed as his advisor walked up to him. "Dear King Andrias, just once, it would be nice if you followed proper castle etiquette," Olivia said with a deadpan expression, which was responded to with a raspberry from the giant newt.
"Oh, etiquette, shetiquette," Andrias said, noticing the two new humans. "Ooh... and what do we have here?"
"Hey..." Anne said with a nervous wave.
Frank, still anxious in the face of the giant amphibian, swallowed his fears and cleared his throat. The king wasn't a threat, at the moment at least, but whether or not he could be trusted was another matter. But perhaps being polite would be the best course of action.
Taking his hand off his knife, Frank grabbed his hat and said with a bow. "It is an honor to make your acquaintance, Your Majesty. My name is-"
"Wait, wait, wait, don't tell me," Andrias said, before making a guessing expression. "Frank, the baseball player." The boy was surprised by the fact that he knew what sport he played but chose to ask about that later.
"Uh, right, exactly, Sire," Frank said, putting his hat back on.
"Which means... you must be Anne. Sup." The King then turned to Marcy and asked, "Am…am I saying that right? Sup?"
"You got it," Marcy said with a smile and a thumbs up.
"Oh, ho ho ho ho! The thumb of approval! And here's a thumb for you, Anne and Frank." Andrias extended a thumb to the two, creating a gust of wind that blew their hair back.
"Uh... right back at cha!" Anne said, giving him a fist bump and leaving a sparkling explosion.
The King looked at his hand like the gods blessed it. He then made a few chuckles, then hearty laughed before jumping up. "Delightful!" As the big guy landed on the floor, the friction caused Anne to lose her balance.
She almost fell to the floor, but Frank came to the rescue and grabbed her. "Whoa! I got you," he said, holding her like he was dipping her as they danced.
"Heh, heh, Thanks, Frank," Anne said with a smile, with Frank giving one back. After a short moment, she blushes and says. "Uh... you can let go now."
"Huh? Oh, OH!" Frank said with a bright blush on his face as he placed Anne on her feet, stepped back, turned away, and rubbed the back of his head. "Uh, yeah, um... ye-yeah."
Marcy saw this unfold, making a knowing smirk at the two love doves in denial.
"Now, let's get down to business, shall we?" Andrias said, kneeling on one knee. "Getting you kids back home, safe and sound. Hmm... Alas, without the music box, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do. Marcy doesn't have it, and, well, I assume you don't have it either."
"Oh! Uh, actually, sire, we do have grandma's box," Frank said with a smile.
"What?" Marcy looked at Frank in shock. "Are you serious?
King Andrias gasped in joy and hope. "Why, this is marvelous news! Come, come, let's see it."
"Oh….well, the thing is…we don't have on us," Frank said nervously. "Hop Pop left it with some contacts to see what they could learn about it."
Hop Pop stood in the back, chuckling nervously as he held his hands behind his back.
"Oh! I do have a photo of it," Anne said, pulling out her phone and pulling up a picture of the music box.
"Yes, yes, a photo . Let's see here," King Andrias said, pulling out a pair of colorful glasses and leaning in to get a better look. "Hmm, how peculiar. Marcy, didn't you say the gems were colored? Look here. They're... They're gray."
Anne turned the photo around, and Frank joined her to look at the picture again. "Hey, you're right. I never actually noticed that," Anne said with an embarrassed look.
"Really?" Frank raised an eyebrow. "You just noticed that?"
"This will require further study in the deepest of our archives," King Andrias said, taking off his glasses. "Give me a few days to work with this information. At that time, we shall reconvene and set a glorious plan in motion."
"Great!" Anne turned to Marcy. "Mar Mar, what can I do to help?"
Marcy asked, "Can you translate ancient Amphibian runes?"
"I sure... can't!"
Marcy chuckled. "Don't worry, dude. I got this."
"Nice! Just like group projects back home," Anne said.
"That's not something to be proud of," Frank said.
King Andrias then said, "Until then, my dear Plantars, go forth and enjoy the sights of Newtopia. We've booked you a suite at the Hemisphere Hotel, my treat. And here…" The king then held out both clenched hands, which, once again, made a gust of wind. "Pick a hand!
"Hmm." Frank walked up to the two large hands and thought for a moment. When he heard King Andrias clearing his throat, Frank looked up and saw him nodding to the right. Raising his eyebrow, Frank pointed to the right hand. "This hand?"
King Andrias, however, opened his hand to reveal that there was nothing in it. "Psych!" He started laughing, much to the annoyance of the boy. "But wait, what's this?" With a trick only a person with years of card trick training could pull off, Andrias presented the boy with a golden credit card. "The Royal Credit Card! It will grant you access to do anything in Newtopia. Be safe with this now. Wars have been waged for less."
Frank looked at the card in amazement as it was placed in his hand. Sprig then hopped on his shoulder and exclaimed, "Whoa, ho, ho, ho! We get to explore Newtopia with unlimited money?! This is a dream come true! Onward, family! Time to see Newtopia!"
"Hang on," Frank pocketed the card and looked up at the king. For a moment, he hesitated to speak. "We…we came here with another girl. Sasha. She came to this world with me and the girls. We have to find her."
He looked back at Anne, who smiled at him gratefully.
"Oh! That's right," Andrias said, sitting down on his throne. "Any ideas where she might be?"
"Well, she allied herself with the toads of Toad Tower and their captain," Anne said. "What was his name?
"Captain Grime," Frank said.
"Yeah, him."
Andrias's eyes widened a bit as he started to become nervous. "Uh, I wouldn't worry about it. In fact, I have everything under control."
"You do," Anne asked.
"After all the tales I've heard from the southern tower, Grime has been labeled a traitor. I've already sent my best general to capture him and bring him in for his trial," Andias said with a frown. "If Sasha is with him, I'm sure she's bringing her along as well."
"Will she be brought in chains," Frank asked.
"Well, if she tries to fight her, yes."
"Excellent," Frank said with a smirk. The idea of seeing the person he hated so much being dragged in chains would be the best thing to see for the pain and suffering she put him through. "I honestly did know what to think of you, but I like you, your highness."
And with that, Frank, the girls, and the Plantars turned and walked out of the throne room. Not without Frank getting back Hellcat's Claw, of course. With the weapon on his back again, the boy took his leave with his friends.
The moment the doors closed, Olivia turned to her king. "Sire, please tell me you didn't see Yunan."
"Oh, then I probably shouldn't say anything," King Andrias said, resulting in Lady Olivia face-palming.