Calamitous Intervention

Past and Present

Toad Tower

Today had gone much wilder than Sasha expected. She had gone from rotting in a filthy cell to making Captain Grime's soldiers actually respect him, defending Toad Tower from two herons, and accepting the position of Lieutenant by the captain's side.

While she couldn't really care less about the whole situation, she did find it amusing and knew she couldn't just waste the opportunity to have control over the toad army. As Grime walked away to meet a toad reporting something to him, she pulled out a photo she kept in her jacket pocket.

The photo was of her, Anne, and Marcy, her two best friends. Her expression softened as she gazed down at it, hoping they had made it in this world. "Hold on for a little longer, girls," she muttered to herself. "I'm coming for you. And when I find you, we're gonna get home."

Sasha reached into her pants pocket and pulled out the Azura figurine Grime had found a while back. Inspecting it, she knew for a fact that Marcy had a similar figurine. She recalled seeing it in her room, so that meant she had to be around here. No matter what, she knew she would find both of them.

Putting both items away, a mischievous grin appeared on her face. "But first, I think we're gonna have some fun with this place." After that, Sasha walked forward, following Captain Grime. The two headed toward the big center of the tower, where there was already a big gathering.

Pushing through to the front of the crowd to get a better look at what the big deal was, she saw three toads that she recognized—Bog, Fens, and Mire. They had previously teased and chastised her when she was stuck and nearly starving in the cell.

"Ah, good, you're back," Grime said, approaching the wagon. "Men, help them unload," he ordered, gesturing to the back of the carrier.

A few toads stepped forward, helping grab the taxes while Bog looked furious for some reason. Before the captain could ask what was wrong, Bog hopped off, growling. "That creature made our jobs a living nightmare!"

Grime paused, not having expected some of his cruelest soldiers to get so angry at something as trivial as tax collecting. "Creature?" he questioned.

When Bog caught a glance at Sasha, his jaw fell open. "Captain, what's the meaning of this?!" he demanded.

"I've appointed her as my lieutenant," Grime calmly explained, although he showed a hint of annoyance at the way he was addressed. "More importantly, what's this 'creature' you were talking about?"

Bog grumbled to himself while Fens and Mire left to let off some steam in the training ground. "Well, Captain, perhaps you will think twice about trusting Sasha's kind when you find out that another one of them refused to cooperate with us," he said snarkily. "That creature acted as a complete thorn in our sides while we were collectin' the taxes. The mayor made us look like fools by lying about the tax list!"

"Watch your tone, Bog," Grime growled while approaching him, not caring about the whole mayor thing for the moment. "Don't forget who you're talking to. Now, describe this creature for me."

"That girl has messy brown hair, brown eyes, tan skin, and could use potions," the brute explained. Sasha rubbed her chin, having a feeling she knew who he was talking about. If Anne were here, then surely Marcy would be here, too.

"Did you see another girl by some chance?" she asked.

Bog turned to her before shaking his head. "No, she was the only one who stood out from those idiotic farmers."

Sasha decided to worry about that when she found Anne in Wartwood and possibly Marcy as well. She hadn't expected it to be this easy to find her two friends, but it was a welcome change in luck. A smile developed on her face before it quickly faded.