Within his castle, Belos was seen giving out instructions to his Abomination Guards.
"Make sure that boy is found!" Belos ordered. "His capture is your Number One Priority! If left unchecked, he could wholly hinder my work. I cannot allow that to happen! Now, dismissed!"
The Abominations marched out of the room just as Andrias himself had entered.
"Looks like your creatures are on a mission," Andrias said.
"I must find The Collector, he is our highest priority," Belos said.
"Even higher than Marco Diaz and his little friends?" Andrias asked.
"I am not too concerned with Marco Diaz," Belos said. "Not at the moment at least, especially with his home destroyed."
"Leaving them alive may not have been the wisest idea," Andrias said. "They're just going to come back again, and I imagine they will be furious."
"Let them be," Belos said. "Those who lose control of their emotions are typically the most likely to lose a battle. Which is a warning that you yourself must heed."
"Uh, are you trying to tell me something?" Andrias asked.
"Only that you too tend to let your emotions get the better of you," Belos said.
"Excuse me, I am in complete control of my emotions," Andrias said. "Meanwhile you're the one who's done foolish things on a whim."
"I beg your pardon?" Belos said.
"For starters, you nearly killed Marcy when I made it very clear that I needed her alive for The Core to inhabit her," Andrias reminded.
"And how did that plan ultimately work out for you?" Belos asked.
"That's not the point!" Andrias said. "You jeopardized my plan before I even had a chance to utilize it. Besides, we had some success. The invasion of Earth has already started, and Darcy has recruited some new allies for us."
"Meanwhile she opened gateways to recruit more allies for our foes," Belos said. "Drakken and Shego are not exactly what I had in mind regarding strong followers."
"I know they're unusual, mostly Drakken, "Andrias said. "But they have their uses. Drakken is supplying us with his henchmen and technology, while Shego is extra muscle for us. It's hard to deny her martial arts skills."
"It's also hard to deny her smug attitude," Belos said. "I do not trust that woman very much."
"I don't trust her that much either, but that's why it's better to keep her and Drakken where we can keep an eye out," Andrias said. "This way, if need be, we can eliminate them. We will still have access to their resources. Plus some of these other worlds can come in handy."
"I will admit, I am quite intrigued about what that man and his grandson were talking about," Belos said. "Bill Cipher to be precise."
"Uh, I know that guy," Andrias said. "If you think Drakken is untrustworthy, you don't want anything to do with Bill. Even my father feared what he could do."
"This jus takes me more interested," Belos said.
"Come on, there are some things you just don't mess with," Andrias said. "For heaven's sake, you were even trying to resurrect the dead. Are there any lengths you won't go to?"
"...That reminds me, with the power I've acquired, perhaps I can try to bring back Toffee and his monster army," Belos said.
"Were...were you not?" Andrias grumbled in annoyance. "Forget it, not like you ever listen to anyone."
"Hm?" Belos turned to Andrias. "Did you say something?"
"...Was that on purpose?" Andrias asked.
"Was what on purpose?" A genuinely confused Belos asked.
"That! That thing where you ignore me!" Andrias said.
"What thing?" Belos asked. "Are you feeling alright? Did you take too strong of a blow to the head?"
Andrias face palmed in annoyance, "Never mind. Right now, I need to send out my new pet to find any resistance members."
"New pet?" Belos asked as Andrias began leaving.
"Technology is no different than magic," Andrias said as he made his way down the hall, with Belos not too far behind. "Use it well, and anything is possible. Even control."
"I am quite intrigued," Belos said. "I wish to see what you have."
"Sure, and if all goes well, you can run it by Mrs. Blight," Andrias said.
"We're finally back on the same page, as expected," Belos said.
Not too far away, Shego was spying on the two, having heard a chunk of their conversation.
"So, Drakken and I are easily disposable huh?" Shego asked. "We'll see who disposes of who first."
The following morning after bunking underneath the Plantar House, Marco slowly began to wake up from his slumber. He looked next to him and saw that Marcy was sound asleep.
"So, it wasn't a dream, I actually saved her, sweet," Marco stated softly. He looked around the room, remembering where he was. "That also means we're in Amphibia...and that my house is gone. Great..."
He carefully got up and got dressed as quietly as possible, not wanting to disturb Marcy. Slowly he made his way out of the room and toward the dining hall.
Breakfast was already being made, but to his chagrin, he saw that it was mostly bugs.
"I know they're frogs, but given their humanish qualities, don't they have any non bug food?" Marco wondered. He looked to see that Sasha and Higgs were already awake. "Hey girls."
"Looks like Marco's awake," Higgs said.
Sasha looked up at the boy, "Yo, Marco...already up and at'em?"
"Yeah," Marco sat beside the two. "Did anyone else wake up?"
"No one from our original party," Sasha said. "They're probably all sleeping in."
"Yeah, I wanted to let Marcy sleep some more since she had a long day," Marco said. "Or rather, a long few days."
"That's an understatement," Sasha said. "How has she been?"
"So far she's fine," Marco said. "She barely had any memories of being stuck with that machine on her head. Maybe a few things here or there but, other than that, she doesn't seem to be experiencing any negative side effects from having that thing on her for so long."
"That's good," Sasha said. "Still, I can't believe you got into a fight with Belos and Andrias."
"Sorry we weren't there," Higgs said.
"It's fine, you were doing your part, and we were doing ours," Marco said.
"Our part includes some cool ideas I had in mind," Sasha said. "A way to weaken our enemies."
"What do you have in mind exactly?" Marco asked.
"A while ago, Anne and the Plantars discovered something called 'The Ruins of Despair', which are just some old factories," Sasha said. "It had a few ancient relics, like CD ROMs, but it's also where these robots come from."
"The robots are made in a factory?" Marco asked. "Like, an actual factory? Similar to ones from Earth?"
"Exactly, and since Andrias got a hold of the music box, those factories have become operational and are producing an army for him," Sasha said. "So the logical solution is to invade and destroy those factories."
"Less factories means less robots," Higgs clarified.
"The factories are just outside of Frog Valley," Sasha said. "It's a bit of a hike from here, but we have our methods of transportation that will make traveling easier."
"We made some new friends here that will be happy to help us out," Higgs said.
"And once we finish up here, we move on to The Boiling Isles and do something similar," Sasha said. "We're going to target Blight Industries."
"Did you say Blight Industries?" Marco asked. "As in the company that Amity's family owns?"
"The very same," Sasha said. "They're the ones making those freaky abomination monsters. If we target that, we'll reduce the abominations we have to deal with."
"Which hurts Belos's army too, since he seems to have done away with normal witches," Higgs said.
"Sad huh?" Sasha asked. "Andrias and Belos are relying on artificial intelligence to win, but without their resources, what will they have?"
"Right now, some of Belos's old coven members are here, and they're not exactly eager to work with that guy again," Marco said.
"Which ones?" Marco asked.
"Well there's a guy named Darrius," Sasha said. "He's Raine's older brother. Someone named Eberwolf is also here. We're likely sending them on a mission soon."
"Ther's also a lady named Terra," Higgs said. "She's off isolated somewhere since no one completely trusts her, but I don't think she'll be going back to Belos. Unless she's desperate."
"So far so good then," Marco said. "I will feel a bit bad for Amity if we destroy her family's place of business though."
"Don't be, it's pretty obvious that Amity couldn't care less," Sasha said. "You remember how her mother was when we saw her a couple of days ago."
"Oh yeah..." Marco recalled Odalia's reaction to seeing him and his friends. "I wish we could do something for Amity."
"Don't bother, it's pointless," Sasha said. "Let's just focus on what we can do for now."
"Yeah...so you want to trash some factories then?" Marco asked. "I'm up for that. What do you have planned?"
"I'd like to have the others around first," Sasha said. "Mostly Anne."
"Sure, we'll just wait," Marco said. "Hopefully it won't take too long."
Meanwhile in the bathroom, Anne was seen brushing her teeth with Molly next to her doing the same thing.
"So Molly," Anne spit out her toothpaste. "Did you sleep well?"
Molly spit her toothpaste out as well as she washed it all down the drain, "Yeah, it was like camping out. Only in a war room."
"This whole thing is so weird," Anne said. "I never expected to see a large bunker of rebels underneath Hop Pop's House."
"That's good though, it means we have plenty of people to help against Andrias," Molly said. "Given what I've seen, you're going to need all the help you can get."
"Yeah, it's going to be dangerous," Anne said. "So, I gotta ask. Are you absolutely sure you-"
"Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sure," Molly insisted, the girl feeling slightly annoyed. "It's really nice of you to worry, but if I didn't want to do this, I wouldn't have followed you through the portal. I saw how dangerous Darcy looked and I still wanted to come. So I got your back on this."
"Thanks," Anne rubbed Molly's head. "I really appreciate it."
"Yo Anne!" Luz called. "Hurry up in there, I gotta do my business."
"Just come do it, I'm not going to judge you," Anne said.
"Are you nuts!?" Luz asked. "I want privacy for that sort of thing!"
"We already bathed together, I don't care if you gotta pee," Anne said.
"You bathed together?" Molly asked.
"Oh yeah, several weeks ago," Anne said. "Me, Luz, and a few more of our friends. It was a hot spring."
"A hot spring!?" Molly asked in excitement. "Awesome! When can I go to one?"
"Soon," Anne said. "Maybe later we can-"
"HURRY UP!" Luz shouted while banging on the door.
Anne rolled her eyes in annoyance, "Lets go Molly, before Luz blows her lid and her bladder."
"I HEARD THAT!" Luz shouted. "When I get in there I'm gonna..." The girl stopped and turned to see Brandy awkwardly staring at her. "What do you want?"
"To use the bathroom, duh," Brandy said.
"Sorry, I'm next," Luz said.
"Fine, just don't take forever," Brandy said. "Not that you could, your hairstyle is so dated."
"Says the dog that was trapped in a forest for who knows how long," Luz said. "Besides, last I checked, bathrooms don't have fire hydrants."
"Hey! That is a crude stereotype!" Brandy said. "Suppose I accused you of peeing on a tree!?"
"That's a guy thing," Luz said, just as the door opened.
"Luz, I love you and all, but that is far from being a guy thing," Anne said. "Remember, I was stranded here, and I had nothing but trees for a while. And it definitely was not limited to peeing."
"Ew..." Brandy said.
"You're a dog, you would do something like that on a rug," Luz said.
"Excuse me, but I go on walks like every decent dog," Brandy said.
"Then why the hell do you need a bathroom!?" Luz asked.
"To wash my hair, duh," Brandy said.
Luz began snarling at the dog girl, "You remind me of every mean girl that I've met in Junior High School."
"Luz, just go pee," Anne said, prompting the girl to go into the bathroom.
"Is she always like that?" Brandy asked.
"To be fair, you kind of started it," Anne said.
"Hey, she told me to use a Fire Hydrant," Brandy said.
"Point is that if we're going to work together, we gotta stay on the same page," Anne said. "Take it from me, the mean ones ended up being isolated."
"I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just being honest," Brandy said. "You're an LA Girl, you should totally vibe with me."
"I want to Brandy, but Luz is my friend," Anne said. "Beyond that, she's my girlfriend."
"Yeah, I know," Brandy said. "You, Luz, Sasha and Marcy are all girlfriends. Maybe Amity too, I'm not sure."
"Uh...I only have one girlfriend," Anne said. "I'm only dating Luz, not the other girls."
"Dating?" Brandy asked. "Wait...are you gay?"
"Bi technically...I think," Anne said. "You know, before Luz, I never really felt attraction to girls. Then again I didn't crush on that many guys, aside from Marco. I guess bi is easier but-"
"You're bi?" Brandy asked.
"Didn't you know that?" Anne asked. "We introduced ourselves recently."
"I can't remember everything!" Brandy said.
"Also, her being bi isn't a big deal, is it?" Molly asked. "Honestly sometimes I feel a certain way around Andrea. I think I could be bi too, but then again..."
"If I were you, I'd focus less on that and more on just being her friend," Anne said. "Otherwise, you'll end up confused too."
"Yeah sure," Molly said. "Besides, I'm more focused on Marco, if you know what I mean."
"He's dating Marcy," Anne said before tapping her chin, "Then again..."
"Then again what?" Molly asked.
"Uh..." Anne shook her head. "Nothing."
"Well, Brandy," Molly focused back on the girl. "No judgement, right?"
"I couldn't care less," Brandy said. "I'm just surprised that an LA girl would date a girl like Luz."
"Hey, Luz is cool," Anne said. "I really like her and I think if you got to know her, you'd like her too."
"I'll think about it," Brandy said. "Right now, I'd just really like to get to know Marco more. If you know what I mean..."
"Girls, come on, he's taken," Anne said. "Then again..."
"Then again what!?" Molly asked. "Is there something you're not telling us!?"
"You're not secretly seeing Marco, are you?" Brandy asked.
"Hey chill with that," Anne warned. "Look, no drama, okay? We just finally got over that with Sasha, I don't want to start again with you, Brandy."
"Whatever..." Brandy said.
"Wow, you really remind me of Andrea in a lot of ways," Molly said.
"Hey, no crushes, I don't swing that way," Brandy said.
"Brandy...you really need to work on how you word things," Anne said.
"Yeah, yeah," Brandy said.
Molly rubbed her stomach, "Anne, I'm getting hungry."
"Same, let's get something to eat before I start getting irritable," Anne said as she left with Molly.
"What a weird bunch," Brandy said, then heard the door open. "Done already?"
"I told you it wouldn't take long," Luz said. "I just needed to do my business, and brush my teeth."
"Yeah, yeah, now move aside," Brandy said as she waltzed right in.
Luz grumbled as she left, "I can see why a female dog is called a bitch."
Meanwhile Star was seen walking down the halls herself, the girl having gotten ready for the day and was ready to do what she had to do as well.
As she walked, she noticed Marcy coming out of a room, the girl looking as chipper as usual, maybe even more so. She had a certain gleam to her.
Marcy turned and spotted the Mewman Princess, "Hey Star!"
"Hey Marcy, how are you feeling today?" Star asked.
"Pretty great, I haven't slept that well in a while," Marcy said. "I gotta say, it's kind of nice being back in Amphibia. I feel so nostalgic here, and I haven't even been away that long."
"Well I'm glad to see you happy," Star said. "I take it you and Marco had a great reunion as well."
"Yeah, you could say that," Marcy said while blushing. "It was nice being back with him again."
"I could imagine," Star said, with a hint of sadness in her voice.
Marcy noticed Star's demeanor, "Uh, is everything alright?"
"Hm?" Star asked. "Oh...I'm fine, just kind of worried about Marco. This was stressful for him after all."
"Yeah, it was," Marcy subconsciously rubbed her chest area. "It's definitely heartbreaking, but I think he's doing okay. I'm making sure of that."
"That's good," Star said.
"Anyway, we should be off," Marcy said. "We have to strike back against our enemies."
"Right...our battle against The Forces of Evil continues on," Star said.
"Fight on!" Marcy declared as she left.
Star sighed in shame, the girl not feeling her usual pep. "I hate this feeling..."
"You hate a feeling?" Came Amity's voice, this taking Star by surprise as she turned to see the witch.
"Oh...Amity," Star awkwardly rubbed her head. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"I'm just on my way to the main hall," Amity said. "After I brush my teeth of course, and maybe other things."
"I should do that too," Star said.
"Still, what's this about you hating a feeling?" Amity asked. "It's never good to hate feelings after all."
"It's not that I hate it...there's just certain feelings that I'm not fond of," Star said. "It's nothing for you worry about."
Amity had no immediate response, she instead placed her hand on Star's shoulder, "Listen to me. I know you feel like you need to be strong. But I think you know by now that you don't have to bear all these burdens alone. Now, if something's bothering you, tell me so I can help."
"...Guess nothing gets past you," Star said. "It's not that I feel too prideful to say anything, more like I feel scummy."
"Just tell me, I won't judge you," Amity said.
Though Star still had reservations about saying anything, she did feel like she could trust Amity. Especially knowing that Amity might understand her feelings. "Truth is...I'm a bit jealous of Marcy."
"That, I figured," Amity said.
"So you know?" Star asked.
"It's not exactly a big secret," Amity said. "We all know you had feelings for Marco, and we all know you chose to push them aside. Even when Marco and Marcy were briefly separated, you chose to let them work it out."
"Of course, I couldn't just move in while Marco was feeling emotionally vulnerable," Star said. "Besides, I technically have a boyfriend."
"Right, Tom," Amity said. "Star, tell me this. Do you even like Tom that way?"
"Well yeah, when we first met, he was all I could think about," Star gestured to her head band. "He even gave me these horns."
"But how about right now?" Amity asked. "Do you still feel anything for Tom? Or did that ship sail?"
"Well..." Star awkwardly rubbed her head. "I don't think I've felt anything for Tom in a while. But what would be the point of breaking up now? It's not like I could get with Marco."
"Star, your feelings for Tom shouldn't have to do with Marco," Amity said. "If you're only with him because you feel like you have to be, because you feel like you have no other options, you're just going to be miserable."
"Yeah, I guess," Star said. "Besides, even if Marco was single, breaking up with Tom just to be with Marco would feel kind of scummy, wouldn't it?"
"Probably," Amity said. "All is fair in love and war though. However, if you're thinking about Marco while being with Tom, that just tells me you're not really into Tom. You barely hang out with him these days, you barely talk about him, it's just not healthy. Like, how do you think he feels about this?"
"...Probably not good," Star said.
"Think about your relationship with Tom, and think really hard," Amity said. "If you don't think it'll work out, you need to break up with him. At least for his sake, because I think Tom deserves more than to have a girl that isn't even putting him first."
"Yikes, am I really being that much of a bad girlfriend?" Star asked.
"Not on purpose, but yeah, kind of," Amity said. "Seriously, you're jealous of Marcy and heartbroken because a guy you like isn't single. If Tom knew you felt this way, he would feel pretty scummy because his girlfriend doesn't truly love him."
"Well, to be fair," Star began. "He seemed pretty chill about the Blood Moon Curse."
"That's because it was his that fault you and Marco got cursed," Amity said. "He wasn't going to be mad at something that he felt was his fault. But the curse was lifted, and it seems like your feelings for Marco were genuine. But, genuine or not, he has a girlfriend."
"Does that even matter?" Star asked. "With all due respect to Marco and Marcy, there's a lot of evidence suggesting those two have an open relationship."
"They...um..." Amity awkwardly rubbed her head while blushing a bit. "I have no comment on that." She focused back on Star. "Just think about it. Don't think about if you truly love Marco or not, think about whether or not you truly love Tom."
"Yeah, good point," Star said. "Sometimes I wonder if I really liked him for him or because he was a bad boy demon guy. Because honestly, he isn't as much of a bad boy as I expected."
"Which is good, isn't it?" Amity asked. "He treats you well, doesn't he?"
"Yeah, but he has no bite," Star said. "Marco's kind, but he has a bite to him."
"Oh he definitely does," Amity said.
"...I gotta know, how do you feel about Marco?" Star asked. "It seems like you really like him sometimes. But, you've also admitted you were gay, more than once too. Are you really gay? Or do you just use that as a line to turn down guys?"
"I can verify that I prefer girls," Amity said. "The first time I felt any attraction to Marco is because he dressed like one."
"...You mean Princess Turdina?" Star asked.
"Yeah, exactly," Amity said. "Honestly, it's stupid, I knew he was a boy so I don't know why I felt that attraction. Probably because he pulls it off so well. Definitely one in a million, because if Tom or Gus tried that, I don't think I would have cared. If anything I would have been disturbed."
"So Marco dressing like a girl isn't disturbing?" Star asked.
"In hindsight, it kind of is," Amity admitted. "But I got why he did it."
"Same, it was disturbing, but he did liberate a bunch of girls, so that's a bonus," Star said. "Thanks to Marco, I'm no longer worried about ever having to see Saint Olga's School for Wayward Princesses again. I had so many nightmares about my parents sending me there ever since I was a little girl."
"Sounds bad," Amity said.
"Well it was run by Meteora, at least before she was turned into a baby," Star said. "That girl had a lot of issues."
"No doubt about that," Amity said.
"But we're getting off topic," Star said. "Was there another reason you liked Marco?"
"I don't know, I guess I was curious," Amity said as she placed her hand near her chest and gripped her shirt a bit. "I spent my whole life crushing on girls, that when I meet a guy I'm somewhat interested in, I wanted to see what it's like. I think I'm just curious more than anything."
"Well you seem very curious at times," Star said.
"I guess, it's just because Marco's the only guy I can trust to explore these feelings with," Amity said. "Honestly, I don't know if I could ever fully fall for him. He's cute, he's charming and I feel safe around him. I will admit that kissing him is not the worst thing, and I wouldn't exactly hate it if he and I did get married. But I do feel like in the end, I'll end up married to a girl rather than Marco. I just prefer them more."
"So...is there a girl you prefer right now?" Star asked.
"There's a reason I wanted to talk to you, because you and I are kindred spirit in this regard," Amity said. "Deep down, I really wanted to be with Luz."
"Luz?" Star asked. "Oh...yeah, that makes sense."
"We actually came close too, then all of this happened," Amity said as she gestured around. "I made the first move, but I wasn't able to properly follow up on it. Then before I knew it, she's hooking up with Anne. It's my fault of course, I felt curious about Marco, then I had so many distractions. But deep down, I felt jealous of Anne, because I want to be with Luz."
"So, you want Luz, and I want Marco," Star said as she tapped her chin. "What to do?"
"Nothing, we have to accept it," Amity said.
"Do we?" Star asked. "Or could we do something about it?"
"Hey, I'm not doing anything that will hurt Marcy or Anne!" Amity warned. "They're my friends. Furthermore, they're our friends!"
"Whoa...dial it back my pretty witch," Star said as she pat Amity on the head. "No one's going to hurt anyone."
"That could change if you ever pat me on the head like that again," Amity said as she knocked Star's hand away. "I'm no one's pet."
"Look, the way I see it, it's perfect, because I see three puzzle pieces that are in similar slots, but the wrong ones," Star said. "I like Marco, and you like Luz, but what about Anne and Marcy? Where do they fit?"
"I don't know, where are you even going with this?" Amity asked.
"It's like this," Star placed her right hand up. "This is Anne." She placed her left hand up. "This is Marcy." She then clasped her hands together. "This is them, making out."
"...You want to set Anne up with Marcy?" Amity asked. "That's your plan?"
"Hey it works," Star said. "They're already friends, they can be more than that. Besides, have you seen how protective Anne gets of Marcy? I heard she was even more protective back before they got stranded in Amphibia. That just screams romance, doesn't it?"
"Being protective of someone isn't inherently romance," Amity said.
"Of course it does," Star said. "Marco was protective of me back when we first met."
"Marco's protective of everyone," Amity said. "Also he doesn't have feelings for you, it's the other way around."
"Still, I liked it, so I bet Marcy will like it with Anne," Star said. "She's bisexual, isn't she?"
"I think so," Amity said. "Pretty much everyone is bisexual around here."
"I'm not," Star said.
"...I find that hard to believe," Amity commented. "I've seen the way you look at Sasha sometimes. You gave Kim some interesting looks as well. Plus I heard you had a thing for Brunzetta and Mina Loveberry."
"All of that was just admiration," Star said. "As far as you know, I'm straight."
"...I still don't believe you," Amity said.
"Look, point is that if Marcy's bi, and Anne is clearly bi, then they have a chance to be together," Star said.
"Just because they're bi doesn't mean they'll like each other," Amity said. "That's like assuming I have a crush on every girl here. I don't. I just like Luz. I will admit though, Anne and Marcy are cute, but I just like Luz."
"And me? Right?" Star asked.
"Uh...you?" Amity asked.
"Sure, I'm cute and perky," Star said. "I bet I drive you wild."
Amity raised her eyebrow in confusion, "Seriously?"
"Eh...getting off topic, let's just try to make some plans," Star said.
"Listen, as much as I want Luz, I don't think this plan is going to work," Amity said. "Anne and Marcy probably don't even like each other that way. Plus there's nothing suggesting that Luz would date me, or that Marco would date you."
"Of course, it adds up," Star said.
Amity pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance, "Let's just focus on liberating the dimensions for now."
"Alright, we'll talk later," Star said as she left with Amity.
It wasn't long before everyone was back in the main planning room. Those who slept over were of course already there.
Others like Kevin, Hamster, Gretel and Perry had shown up at their earliest convenience.
"Oh hey, you made it," Marco said, the boy sitting next to Marcy.
"Yeah, it wasn't easy," Kevin said. "Our cousin Fred is covering for us though."
"Good on him, then," Dipper said.
"Fred's a girl," Gretel pointed out.
"Oh...really?" Dipper asked. "Sorry, the name Fred sounds so masculine."
"She gets that a lot, but she really does not care," Kevin said.
"Anyway, I'm glad you're all here," Sasha said. "Higgs and I have been doing a lot of planning regarding this upcoming mission. Our plan is to weaken Andrias's forces in Amphibia by limiting his supply of machines."
"So we're going to trash some factories," Higgs said.
"Really?" Kevin asked. "That's it?"
"What do you mean, 'that's it'?" Sasha asked.
"It just feels kind of basic," Kevin said.
"Basic? Destroying factories means less Frobots!" Sasha said. "Andrias can't build robots if he doesn't have a place that will let him do that!"
"I guess..." Kevin said.
Sasha rolled her eyes briefly before continuing, "As I was saying, we destroy the factories and-"
"Hey wait, isn't this kind of immoral?" Kevin interrupted.
Sasha glared at Kevin in disbelief, "Literally how!?"
"What if there's people working at the factory?" Kevin asked.
"We'll liberate them!" Sasha said.
"But what if they like their jobs?" Kevin asked.
"Then they're willingly oppressing others, thus making them evil!" Sasha said.
"Okay...but what if they like the jobs, but don't like oppressing others?" Kevin asked.
"Kind of hard to enjoy a job like creating destructive robots and then feeling bad because you're hurting others," Sasha said. "Now please stop interrupting."
"Okay fine," Kevin said.
"...So, basically, we destroy all the factories," Sasha said. "Then-"
"Wait, will this be good for the environment?" Kevin asked.
Not too long later, the boy was thrown out of the Plantar House and landing in mud. "Hey!"
Sasha came back into the war room while dusting her hands, "Pain in the ass."
"Excuse me, you realize that's my brother, right?" Gretel asked.
"You wanna join him?" Sasha asked.
"Hey come on, no fighting," Marco said. "Sasha, just continue your plan."
"It's simple, we blow up some factories," Sasha said. "Higgs and I already marked the location of one. We're going to trash that, then move onto the others before making our way to The Boiling Isles."
"There, we plan on trashing Blight Industries," Higgs said. "No more Abomination Monsters."
"Trashing mom's place of work would be so fun," Amity said. "I can't wait."
"Wait, your mom owns it?" Gretel asked. "Can't you just ask her to stop making those monsters?"
"My mom and I aren't exactly on friendly terms," Amity said.
"...Huh? But, she's your mom," Gretel said. "Aren't moms always on friendly terms with their kids?"
"Not my mom," Amity said. "I'm not one of the lucky ones."
"Yeah, parents suck sometimes," Sasha said.
"...This is so weird," Gretel said. "I never felt this way about my mom."
"Welcome to the real world, not every kid have good relationships with their parents," Sasha said.
"I can speak from experience," Ford said. "While my parents seemed to favor me, they were really quick to throw my brother out onto the streets after he made a huge mistake in their eyes."
"Is that why he's all...?" Anne began, trying to think of a respectful way to say it.
"A miscreant?" Ford asked. "He's always been like that, that's why our father got rid of him. But doing just made things worse between the two of us. Of course, Stanley did bring it on himself, that much must be made clear."
"Did he really? Or was it a misunderstanding?" Amity asked.
"It's in the middle," Ford said. "I will confess that my father could have handled things better but Stanley should have done better on his end too."
"Geez, this talk of families, it reminds me of the helmet I wore," Marcy said. "I specifically remembers bits of a King named Aldrich. I think there's some lingering drama between him and Andrias."
"Oh yeah, Scratch mentioned seeing someone like that," Molly said.
"Where is Scratch?" Mabel asked.
"He's back in the ghost dimension," Molly said. "I'll call him when I need him."
"Family problems seems consistent in my family too," Hunter said. "It must have been bad if Belos had such a large falling out."
"There were other Golden Guards if I recall," Luz said. "Are they relatives of yours?"
"Come to think of it, if Belos is your uncle, does that mean your mother or father was his brother or sister?" Anne asked.
"I don't remember my parents very well," Hunter said. "I just remember Belos saying they died in an accident."
"He probably caused that accident," Amity said.
"Yeah, no doubt about that," Hunter said.
Gretel seemed slightly uncomfortable, "Wow, to think the worst problem I saw was a boy in my class named Nordle who tried too hard to impress his father."
"Was his father some high-ranking success or something?" Marco asked.
"No, he's a supervillain," Gretel said. "We call him Professor Exclamation."
"That's an interesting name," Marco said.
"Yeah, he yells a lot, and he's insecure because he has no elbows," Gretel said. "So he can't bend his arms."
"That...sounds pretty awful actually," Sasha said.
"Well my classmate Nordle said that his father wants him to grow up to be evil," Gretel said. "So Nordle is a bit conflicted."
"So this Professor Exclamation guy is trying to mold his son into being what he wants him to be?" Hunter asked.
"Sounds like why things are so complicated with me and my mother," Amity said. "She used to dye my hair green to match hers."
"Yeah, you've mentioned that a few times," Sasha said. "Glad you have purple though, it suits you better."
"Purple? It looks pink to me," Higgs said.
"Purple, pink, regardless it looks great on Amity," Sasha said.
"Oh, thanks for that," Amity said as she adjusted her hair. "Glad it worked out."
"You should consider letting it be your natural brown hair," Marco said. "I think it would suit you well."
"Sure, I'll think about that too," Amity said. "I'll look just like my father."
"The reason I bring up my classmate is because I always felt like deep down, he and his father could find peace," Gretel said. "At least I hope they can."
"Well, until his father stops being so full of himself, it's not happening," Amity said. "Just like my mother will never stop being full of herself either. So until she changes for good, I couldn't care less about her place of work getting destroyed. I'll even blow it up myself if I need to."
"We'll hold you to that," Sasha said. "For now, we should focus on the factories here."
"Okay, do you have a solid plan?" Marco asked.
"My idea was sending out different groups to hit each factory," Sasha said. "I'll suggest a party, and then we pick the leader."
"Are you going to be one of the leaders?" Sprig asked.
"I...don't know," Sasha said. "It depends on everyone. Honestly, I thought about passing all of this leadership stuff to Anne."
"Me!?" Anne asked. "What for!? I'm not a leader!"
"Anne, you're the most popular girl in Amphibia, they even have a statue of you in town!" Sasha said.
"The one with the outdated dance?" Luz teased, much to Anne's annoyance.
"You know you love it," Anne said. "It's got my face, and you love my face."
"Flirt later, will you?" Star said.
"It looks cute though," Tom said.
"Yeah, I wish I had someone to flirt with me," Kelly said.
"Well," Ron brushed his hair back. "Today is your-"
"I meant someone attractive," Kelly said, this absolutely shattering Ron's confidence.
"...Kelly, that was kind of mean," Tom said.
"But I'm being honest," Kelly said.
"Still, a bit on the mean side," Gus said.
"Yeah..." Willow said.
"Oh...well, sorry blonde guy," Kelly said.
"Sure...it's fine," Ron said, pretending that it didn't bother him.
"My point is..." Sasha said, hoping to move on from the awkward. "That the Frogs here, especially in Wartwood, have more faith in Anne than they do anyone else. If anyone was going to liberate this world, then it should be Anne. She needs to lead the charge."
"Sasha, I can't," Anne said. "I'm not cut out to be the leader. You're just fine, you should keep the leadership position."
"I don't know, every time I'm the leader, it leads to trouble," Sasha said. "I really want to save these worlds, so I'll put my pride aside for that."
"Wow, that's very mature of you," Marco said. "But Sasha, you can be a leader without being bossy."
"Yeah, you just need to listen a little more," Marcy said. "You're actually very charismatic as a leader."
"I'm still not sure..." Sasha said. "Higgs, what do you think?"
"I like you as leader, but I agree that if the Frogs see Anne as this big hero, she should have a say in this," Higgs said.
"I agree, and I say that Sasha should maintain her leadership position," Anne said.
"Just give it a shot, Anne," Sasha said as she presented her helmet to her childhood friend. "You're very intelligent after all. You made it far when trying to fix the music box."
"That was Marcy's doing," Anne said.
"I mostly just helped with the first temple," Marcy said. "The second temple was mostly you."
"Oh yeah, I remember the temples," Luz said. "I came in during the tail end of that stuff, that's when Sasha dominated the one we were at."
"Yeah, that's also where we had problems because of my leadership," Sasha said.
"Sasha, the leadership wasn't the problem," Anne said. "Don't you remember? I got mad at you because of how bossy you were. I don't mind following you, I just need to be able to give my own input once in a while."
"That's why I want you to be the leader," Sasha said. "If you're leader, you don't have to worry about my bossy nature."
"Sasha, you're not listening!" Anne scolded. "This is what I'm talking about! I'm trying to tell you what the problem is and you're ignoring it!"
"Anne, come on," Marco pleaded.
"No Marco, let them work it out," Luz said.
"Sasha, I don't mind you leading us, I just need you to listen, and right now, it seems like you're trying too hard to fix something," Anne said. "You went from one extreme to another."
"I just don't want there to be more drama," Sasha said. "I want to be someone you can trust again. So that when this is all over, we can go back to being friends like we used to."
"Sasha, I want that too," Anne said. "If I didn't want to be your friend, I wouldn't have given you so many chances. But, I still want you to think rationally."
"I am," Sasha said. "Rationally, everyone in Amphibia trusts you more than they trust me," Sasha said.
"That's fine, but leadership isn't my strong quality, it's yours," Anne said. "If I try being leader, I'm going to mess up, and I don't want to endanger anyone."
"...Well, I don't know if I want to lead anyone, not after how scummy I've been," Sasha said.
"Why does it have to be one of you two?" Brandy asked from nearby as she checked her make-up. "Just have someone else do it and stop with the drama. It's bad for your skin."
"That's one way to put it," Marco said. "But how about this. Rather than it just being one of you, how about if it's both of you?"
"Both of us?" Sasha asked.
"Well, sort of," Marco said "Sasha, you should handle more of the leaderships stuff since you're a Lieutenant in the Toad Army. But, since Anne is the Symbol of Peace among these Frogs, make her your second in command. Just take time to listen to her."
"But Marco, I screwed up," Sasha said. "How is anyone going to listen to me?"
"I screwed up a few times too," Marco said. "Remember Doom-Nut?"
"Oh yeah...that was kind of funny," Sasha said, with others agreeing. "Still, you do more good than bad."
"So can you," Marco said. "Just take what you learned and apply it. In the end you're not doing this alone, you have us."
"Plus, you have more potential leaders here," Amity said. "Take Kim, she seems like a good leader."
"She is Captain of her cheerleading squad," Ron said.
"Just like you, Sasha," Kim said.
"Kindred spirits," Sasha said.
"If Marco can bounce back, so can you," Tom said. "And Marco's definitely bounced back a bunch of times."
"Thanks man," Marco said.
"Yeah, see, harmony," Brandy said. "Now stop moping and get this stuff done already."
"Brandy, do you plan on helping?" Anne asked.
"Depends, what do you need me to do?" Brandy asked. "I should warn you, I'm not a fighter."
"Well, how about you help us carry supplies?" Sasha asked.
"Like manual labor?" Brandy asked. "That isn't my style."
"Well...are you good at math?" Sasha asked.
"Depends, I do have an IQ of 150," Brandy said.
"I'm sorry...did you just say 150!?" Luz asked. "Isn't that like...super smart?"
"An IQ like that can explain the Theory of Relativity!" Dipper said.
"My word, you are one intelligent young lady!" Ford said.
"It's a gift," Brandy said.
"Didn't expect that," Tom said.
"Yeah, me neither," Kelly replied. "The multiverse is full of surprises."
Luz however seemed to doubt it, "I'm gonna need proof."
Brandy pulled out a piece of paper, "Read it and weep."
Luz quickly scanned it to make sure she didn't get it wrong, "How does a girl like you have this large of an IQ?"
"Don't be jealous," Brandy said as she pulled the paper away.
"This is so cool! I feel like I have a brainy buddy!" Marcy said. "Wait, who else is a genius!?"
"Dipper seems smart," Anne said.
"Who me? Nah, I'm pretty average," Dipper insisted.
"Nonsense, you're a smart young lad," Ford said. "Especially when you're focused."
"If you want him to focus, bring Wendy along," Mabel teased. "Dipper would do anything to show off for her."
"Mabel, not funny," Dipper said. "Anyway Brandy, you can help me out with some research if you're up for it."
"Eh, sounds boring," Brandy said.
"Oh you are SUCH a freeloader!" Luz said.
"Hey!" Brandy said as she glared at Luz. "Marco said that-"
"I know what Marco said!" Luz shouted. "He said you can just laze around all day while we get things done!"
"He told me he just wanted to get me home," Brandy said. "I know it's hard because he needs to focus here so my home isn't in any danger. I know he just wants me nearby because he's worried. Isn't that right, Marco?"
"Of course, I'd hate it if anything bad happened to you," Marco said.
"Oh you flatter me too much, Marco," Brandy said in a flirting tone. "Okay, I suppose I can help out, but I want to go wherever Marco's going."
"You are so freaking ridiculous," Luz said.
"Come on, we just started making peace with Sasha, do we really want to have trouble with Brandy?" Marco asked.
"Honestly it's a miracle Brandy came after Sasha's change of heart," Amity said. "Then again, looking at Brandy reminds me way too much of how I used to be as well."
"Well Brandy, Marco is going to help destroy a factory," Sasha said. "I won't ask you to do too much, but I do need you to carry something."
"Is it heavy?" Brandy asked.
"No, but it's important," Sasha said. "I need you to carry around some mushrooms, can you do that?"
"Well, that's weird, but sure," Brandy said.
"Good," Sasha said. "Now, let's divide ourselves into groups. I will take Anne with me, and we'll be bringing Marcy, Luz, Amity and Molly."
"Oh, is Marco not coming?" Marcy asked.
"Sorry, I know he's your boyfriend and you want to be together, but I need to keep the teams as even in strength as possible," Sasha said.
"Oh..." Marcy stretched her arm across her chest as she grabbed her other shoulder. "I suppose that makes sense."
"We do what we gotta go," Marco said as he placed his arm around his girlfriend, the girl now with her hand over hear heart and feeling very tender.
"Yeah, I suppose," Marcy said as she took that hand and wrapped it around Marco.
"Man, being separated from your girlfriend? That's gotta suck. At least Ivy and I don't have to worry about that, right Sasha?" Sprig turned to Sasha, who simply glared at him. "Uh...right Sasha?" Sasha continued to glare without saying a word, making things more uncomfortable. "Sasha...say something please."
"Moving right along," Sasha said, ignoring Sprig's worries. "Marco, I need you to lead another team. You'll have Brandy, like I promised. You'll also have Star, Kim, Ron, Kelly and Tom."
"Sounds good," Tom said. "Looks like I get to be with my girlfriend."
"That reminds me," Star said. "Tom, I want to break up with you."
This caused another awkward silence in the group, eveyone looking on in disbelief at what they had just heard.
"Star...seriously? Now of all times?" Sasha asked in disbelief. "You could literally do this at any point, why now!?"
"A friend, who's name I won't mention..." Star winked at an awkward feeling Amity, "Said that it's important for me to be honest about my feelings. Dragging this out would just hurt in the long run, so I figured I'd do this now."
Amity rubbed her temples in frustration, this not being what she had in mind when she gave Star that advice.
"Star, I get that...but we're trying to set up a mission to save the world," Sasha said. "Like, first Kelly and now you? What is it with you Mewni girls and your blunt harshness regarding a guy's feelings?"
"I'm not from Mewni, I'm from Woolandia," Kelly corrected. "And just so its clear, I don't agree with what Star just did."
"Yeah Star, how could you just do that!?" Gus said. "You're better than that!"
"I'm sorry, but it's best that we do this," Star said. "Tom's okay with it, he's a strong man. Right Tom?"
"R-right..." A heartbroken Tom said. "I'm a strong man. I can take it."
"...Okay, I'm switching Tom for Gus," Sasha said.
"Can you switch me out too?" Kelly asked. "I don't think I'd feel too comfortable around Star right now."
"Hey!" Star scolded. "You just called Ron ugly! He's not even ugly! He just has a really large chin!"
"Large!?" Ron grabbed Brandy's mirror, much to her annoyance. "It's not that large, is it!?"
"Yeah, it is, now give me back my stuff!" Brandy shouted as she snatched the mirror away. "The nerve of some people."
Kim looked just about ready to step to Brandy, but Anne was quick to calm her, not wanting any more internal trouble.
"This is getting us off track!" Sasha said. "Ron, I'm sorry these girls are being rude. Are you up for a mission still?"
Ron nodded his head, "Of course, I've made the mistake of letting my emotions get the better of me and compromising a mission, I won't make another mistake like that."
"That's good," Sasha said. "Also, you don't look too bad. I'm not interested in a date, but I do like your hair, so you got that going for you."
"Oh really?" Ron brushed his hair back. "Funny, I tried changing my style to match a guy named Señor Senior, Junior since his hair was stylish, but it was turning me into something I'm not so I dropped it. Still, girls told me I looked like a movie star."
"...What kind of name is Señor Senior, Junior?" Sasha asked.
"That's what I was wondering when Kim told me that story," Luz said.
"I really want to know more, but we'll talk later," Sasha said. "To clarify, Marco will be going with Star, Brandy, Kim, Ron, Gus and Willow."
"I like your hair too, Ron," Willow said as she bashfully played with her hair.
Ron did a gun click motion, which made Hunter feel slightly jealous.
"Any chance I can go with them too?" Hunter asked.
"No, I need you to go with Higgs," Sasha said. "Take Sprig, King and Gretel with you."
"What about Ivy?" Sprig asked.
"She's staying here until further notice," Sasha said. "Andrias is likely to find out what we're up to, and we need muscle here to protect the base. That's why I'm not sending everyone."
"Oh come on! You can spare Ivy!" Sprig said. "You have The Magic High Commission here, and they're ready to fight!"
"Damn right we are," Hekapoo said near the counter. "But you better listen to Sasha, little froggy."
"Sprig, I don't want the teams to be too large, otherwise Andrias's forces will see it coming a mile away," Sasha said. "We need to take him by surprise. Wipe out as many factories as we can, and while he's distracted, we're going to head straight for The Boiling Isles."
"Getting to my mom's factory won't be easy," Amity said. "She has guards everywhere, so we better use this time to plan for that too."
"Already done," Sasha said. "I spoke with Edric and Emira earlier. It sounds like your father might be willing to help."
"Daddy?" Amity asked. "How is he? I haven't spoken to him since Belos cast that draining spell."
"He's fine, he's been helping other witches," Sasha said. "Later you can speak to Darrius about it."
"Is he here?" Marco asked.
"He and his brother Raine are already off on their own mission," Sasha said. "I asked them along with Eberwolf, King River, Globgor, Lilith and Yunan to cause some distractions. This way Andrias will be that much more in the dark regarding our plan."
"Wow, good idea," Marco said while offering a thumbs up.
"Thanks," Sasha said. "We move out in an hour."
"By the way, what about Eda?" Luz asked. "Is she doing anything?"
"I asked her not to due to her injury," Sasha said. "Same with Grime. "
"You expect to keep Eda down?" King asked. "You know she won't just give up."
"I'm aware," Sasha said. "That's why Hop Pop is there to keep things calm, same with Olivia."
"By the way," Polly leapt onto the table. "What about me?"
"You can stay here as well, we still need the muscle," Sasha said.
"Sweet, I'm muscle!" Polly boasted. "All I need is an M-16 and-"
"Not happening!" Anne scolded.
"Listen, we leave in an hour, take this time to prepare," Sasha said.
"Alright, my team with me," Marco said. "We'll make plans."
Just as everyone was about to leave, Star bend down to whisper to Amity, "With Marco and Marcy separated, now may be our best chance to make a move."
"I'm not doing that," Amity said.
"Hey, do you really want to miss out?" Star asked. "You deserve to be happy too, we both do."
"I know, but..." Amity felt uncertain.
"Just think about it," Star said as she left with the others.
Amity glanced over at Marcy, feeling slightly guilty about what was happening. She also glanced at Tom, feeling bad for the heartbroken demon, the girl now blaming herself for his humiliating break-up.
She glanced once more at Marco, the girl placing her hands across her chest as if mimicking a hugging motion.
"Hey," Marcy sat by Amity. "So, looks like Marco's off. Kind of wish I was going with him though."
"I get that," Amity confirmed. "The others will keep him safe though. I bet even Brandy will if she needed to."
"Yeah, I trust them to watch over Marco, especially Star," Marcy said, this suddenly causing stress and some guilt from Amity. "It's sweet how much she worries over her best friend. We just gotta do well ourselves."
"Yeah..." Amity said. "Marcy...you know you're my friend, right?"
"Uh...yeah, " Marcy said, the girl feeling confused. "Is something bothering you?"
"It's just..." Amity started feeling strange. "I really missed you when you were trapped by The Core. I just want you to know you mean a lot to me."
"Aw, you're sweet," Marcy said as she extended her arms. "Bring it in, pal."
Amity leaned in to hug Marcy, the two feeling a strange tenderness for the moment. After breaking it off, Marcy stood up to leave.
"I'm gonna grab us some drinks so we can talk more," Marcy said.
"Sure, good idea," Amity said.
"And Amity, thanks for being so sweet," Marcy said. "You mean a lot to me."
"So do you," Amity said.
Marcy blushed a bit as she walked off, the girl strangely placing her hand acorss her stomach, an action mirrored by Amity as both girls had Marco on the mind.
While plans were being made, elsewhere King River was seen leading his squad across Amphibia.
"Such a peculiar land this is," River said. "It's always fascinating to see life outside of Mewni."
"Or The Boiling Isles," Darrius said.
"Of course!" Yunan said as she placed her foot on a rock in a triumphant manner. "Amphibia is a world of wonder! Many like myself feel lucky to call this home."
"Well, let's continue, we must provide a distraction for Sasha Waybright, so her plan may commence," Darrius said.
"I just hope this goes well," Raine said.
"It will, just have faith," Darrius said. "Later we shall reunite with Alador and finish the plans."
"I just want to find my daughter," Globgor said. "I'll destroy Belos myself to get Meteora back."
"I will help you with that, Globgor," River said. "From one man to another, and one father to another."
"Much appreciated, King River," Globgor said.
As Eberwolf sniffed the ground, he took note of something in the distance, then tried getting everyone's attention.
"Did you spot something, Eber?" Darrius asked.
"I believe he has..." Lilith said as she pointed to the distance. "Look!"
"My word!" Darrius said as he spotted the trouble.
From the distance was a giant snake with a large mechanism attached to him. This caused some understandable worry from the others.
"What has Andrias done!?" Yunan asked in disbelief.
"He has made things quite difficult," Darrius said. "We must slay that beast!"
"One problem..." River said as he gestured to some robotic looking crabs. "It looks as though Andrias has been busy."
"According to Buff Frog, just one of these things was trouble!" Lilith said.
"Well fortunately, you have an advantage you did not have before," Globor said.
"That being?" Lilith asked.
Globgor began to grow in size, "Me! Come at me you pieces of garbage!"
"Charge!" Darrius declared as his team went to do what they must.
The plan to free the multiverse was underway, with the first major step in motion.