Scouting Mission
Crunching leaves.
Squishing mud.
The cries and trills of wild birds.
The fluttering wings of insects.
The splash of puddles left behind from the previous night's rainstorm.
These noises were like a majestic orchestra to Marcy as she ran through the great, wild, marshy forests that made up the borderlands west of Newtopia.
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For the past year,the twelve year old had been assisting the scientists working at the castle laboratory, her interest in science and the creatures and plants and everything related to Amphibia’s biology having skyrocketed since her encounter with them when they’d captured the barbari-ant the year before.
She’d wasted no time in asking King Andrias about visiting the laboratory during her break from her royal lessons after lunch, and he had given her his permission to go, as long as these visits didn’t interfere with her education. Since then,Marcy had been visiting the scientists during her lunch break,and it hadn’t taken her long to get to know all of them personally.
When she’d first come to visit,the first thing they’d asked was to study her. They’d been fascinated with her ever since her presence had been announced, and now that she was going to be seeing them more frequently, they were very interested in studying her and unlocking all her biological secrets.
They’d proposed a deal- If she’d be so kind as to let them study her, show her around the lab and she could get involved with their current studies and projects.
How could Marcy refuse such an offer?
From there on out,she’d acted as both an assistant and research subject for the royal scientists. They'd spend the first half of her visit studying her- Taking hair,skin cell and - When Marcy had felt brave enough to face a needle- Blood samples from her and studying them thoroughly,all while asking Marcy questions regarding her senses, what she and her kind ate or could not eat, what she remembered about her kind from her short time back at home. Once she had answered their questions, she was then free to ask hers,asking them about what they were studying, where they'd found what they were studying,and what she could do to help.
At first,they’d only showed her their latest research subjects-usually large insects, sea creatures from the ocean surrounding Newtopia, or some strange fungi they’d picked up from their travels to the forests west of Newtopia. They’d show her their notes and tell her their observations, then would let Marcy observe the subject and tell them anything she’d observed.
Despite Marcy being a child, they never treated her like one or talked down to her. They used proper scientific terms to describe things, let her make her own observations, and, most of all, they listened to her.
Truly listened to her.
They would let her speak, and they would listen to her and evaluate what she had to say before giving their own responses.
It was this that made Marcy love visiting the laboratory most of all.
No one had ever listened to her like they did. Her own parents, King Andrias, Lady Olivia….Even General Yunnan didn’t seem to really listen to her as much as the royal scientists did.
It was refreshing…
It was uplifting.
It made her feel like she actually mattered and that she was genuinely cared for.
It was because of this appreciation that Marcy would always give them her full attention and respect, and would always think carefully about what she said around them. She even found that she was less clumsy around them- although there were still quite a few times where she’d tripped over her own feet and had accidentally knocked over a few vials and beakers of strange substances onto the ground.
…..Or had accidentally leaned on the fire alarm lever, which had caused the fire alarm bell to blare loudly and irritate every animal specimen in the lab so that they all had to be tranquilized to ensure none of them grew too dangerously irate and could potentially break free of their cages.It had also caused the emergency fire sprinklers in the ceiling to activate, flooding the lab and ruining some exposed notes and papers that had been laid out or pinned to the laboratory walls...
Nevertheless, Marcy proved to be truly interested in the scientist’s work, and was very obviously willing to help. So, after a little while, the scientists began to let Marcy get more involved with their work,giving her tasks such as taking notes, mixing chemicals and solutions, making sketches of new specimens, and even helping to carry out tests and experiments.
Marcy was always fully invested in the work, making sure to put her best effort into everything she was asked to do, whether it be as unimportant as organizing notes or as potentially dangerous as dropping the right amount of chemicals into a solution so that it neither emitted highly toxic fumes or caused a massive explosion within the lab.
She worked hard, and as she worked with the scientists more and more she began to bond with them. They became her teachers, her inspirations, and, most of all, her best friends.
The only friends she’d ever had.
She truly got along with them and shared a common interest and passion for science with them.
She felt comfortable with them, she could communicate with them.
They did not fear or antagonize her for her odd appearance and mannerisms- They saw her as unique and exciting,something to learn more about.
She wasn’t a burden or nuisance-she was both a subject of great interest and a valued colleague to them.
She was accepted by them.
Of course, her times with them were short- After a half an hour or so in the lab she would be dragged back to her royal lessons by Lady Olivia.
Marcy hated leaving the laboratory and going back into the bleak, comfortless, suffocating halls of the palace. She was only ever happy in the laboratory, with the scientists and the animals they studied and all the tools and equipment and everything else that was kept in the white, bright, sanitary sanctuary that was the royal laboratory.
When she had to go back to the palace, it always made her feel this sense of dread….As if she’d been drained of all joy and enthusiasm and wouldn’t feel any degree of joy again till the next day, when she could visit the laboratory again.
She’d told King Andrias this, and had asked if she could please have more time with the scientists and could get more involved with their work. At first King Andrias had refused, stating that her royal lessons had to come first- she was going to be the Queen when she grew up, after all, not a scientist.
Marcy had then offered to go after lessons were done- Any free time she had after her lessons, before dinner and before bedtime, she’d spend in the laboratory helping the scientists. King Andrias had then sighed and relented, granting her his permission to visit the laboratory both during her lessons break and in free time.
Marcy couldn’t have been happier.
Once she began spending even more time within the lab, learning more and learning how to use certain tools, operate equipment and discern different specimens and chemicals, the scientists decided that it was high time she was given more important tasks to do- Such as scouting missions.
Words couldn’t describe the sheer amount of joy that Marcy had felt when the scientists had proposed she go on a scouting mission for them. They hadn’t planned anything big or major for her, considering she was still only a young girl- Plus if she was put in any kind of dangerous situation, Frog knew what King Andrias would do to them.
She’d just be exploring the forests west of Newtopia-They’d already explored most of the area but there were still a few unexplored areas nearby-the region was relatively safe-apart from a few broods of wild birds-but during that time of the year they tended to be absent from the areas the scientists studied, and besides that, they were usually more interested in the large insects that dwelled within the forests than they were in the scientists.
Their proposal that Marcy go on a scouting mission was brought to King Andrias for approval, of course, before they made the arrangements for Marcy to go on the mission. The colossal king had thought about it-Then had agreed to let Marcy go- On the condition that General Yunnan accompany her on the mission to protect her. He also commanded Lady Olivia to attend the mission, as she could try and squeeze in a few royal lessons whenever they had a break,since the mission would take place midday for safety reasons and would likely cut into Marcy’s lessons a bit.
Lady Olivia CLEARLY didn’t wish to venture anywhere outside the castle walls….But whatever the king commanded, she had to do.
And so, a month after the proposal had been approved, Marcy, along with General Yunnan and Lady Olivia, armed with a belt of portable test tubes, a small live specimen jar that had holes in the lid, thick leather gloves, some small tongs, a first aid kit, a leather book bag to carry all the supplies in, and- In general Yunnan’s case- Heavy gloves with retractable claw like switchblades- Traveled via royal sparrow steed to the Forests of Jadewood, just west outside of Newtopia- Where they now where, Marcy lost in a blissful reverie as her desires to explore the world outside Newtopia were finally made real.
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“MARCY!! LADY MARCY WAIT UP!!!”
Marcy was shaken by her reverie by Lady Olivia, Who had been trying to chase after Marcy, who had been running the moment they’d gotten to the forest.
Lady Olivia- Who’s hair now had fallen twigs and leaves tangled in it, who’s dress and shoes were coated in a thick layer of mud and who’s normally light blue face was now light red due to her being out of breath from running- Was chasing after Marcy, looking about ready to pass out.
“Yeah! Wait up kid!” General Yunnan followed Lady Olivia, slicing low hanging twigs, vines and branches out of the way with her switchblade claws, the falling debris falling down and getting stuck in her hair and falling into the collar of her gorget.
Marcy halted, giggling as she watched Lady Olivia come to a sudden stop, Yunnan not seeing her and slamming into the smaller newt, Lady Olivia falling face down into the squishy, muddy earth as Yunnan froze, then began frantically apologizing.
“ Ah! Sorry about that, M'lady! Didn't see ya there!”
She sheathed her switchblade claws, then extended a hand to Lady Olivia. Lady Olivia pulled herself up from the mud, her face and chest now absolutely smothered with mud and moss.
She glared at General Yunnan, smacking her hand away and wincing- Not remembering that the Newtopian general had been wearing metal gloves. She then stood up, huffing and catching her breath, glaring annoyedly at Marcy, who stifled her giggling, trying not to smile at the sight of her normally prim and pristine teacher.
“Sorry about that Lady Olivia...I just….Wow…...It's so….” Marcy trailed off, too entranced by the beautiful new world that surrounded her.
The tall, emerald green trees with velvety bark and leaves that sparkled under the sunlight, laden with dewdrops. The ambiance of bird cries, bug chirps and swaying branches with rattling wet leaves. The bright, beautiful flowers that popped out like fireworks in the dark dampness of the forest. The lines of luminescent mushrooms that sprouted from the ground or covered the bases of tree trunks and the surfaces of logs.
It was all so…..
Magical.
Even if she was here to do scientific research, she couldn’t help but feel like she was in some surreal, magical place in which science didn’t exist, only magic that made the fungi glow and the flowers bloom and the tree bark so soft it felt as if she were touching a baby bunny whenever she touched it.
“.....This place is wonderful…” Marcy said softly.
“ This place is revolting!! It’s filthy, it’s too moist and hot in here, It reeks of wet rot and mold, Oh it's just abysmal!!” Lady Olivia complained, trying to pull debris out of her hair.
“ It’s not so bad! You’re just not used to being anywhere outside of civilization.” Yunnan said, chuckling lightly.
“ Lady Marcy, Lets just go and collect whatever you were here to collect, I need to get back to the castle and get myself a hot bath as soon as possible.” Lady Olivia said agitatedly, looking down at her muddied clothes.
” Oh, don’t worry about it Lady Olivia, let the child explore and have her fun! Frog knows the next time she’ll be out of the castle again!”
General Yunnan clapped Lady Olivia on the back, the royal advisor letting out an “OOF!” and glaring at the taller amphibian again.
“ Don’t worry Lady Olivia, just let me explore a little more, at least until I find something I can take back to the scientists.Please?” Marcy pleaded,eyes big and begging, like a tarantula pup begging for table scraps.Lady Olivia sighed.
” Just please find something soon….” She muttered, not liking the feeling of mud and forest debris covering her in the least.
Marcy smiled wide, running back ahead into the forest, General Yunnan chuckling.
“ She’d make a good ranger, that one….Lots of energy and stamina….She’d be a great addition to our guard..”
“ Well unfortunately for your guard, Marcy already has a career set up for her, one more important than anything the Newtopian royal guard could offer her.” Lady Olivia snapped.
“ It’s bad enough the child keeps wanting to ditch her lessons to go to the laboratory…I don’t need you puting any more ideas into her head.”
“ I didn’t say anything about asking Marcy to join the guard! I was just saying she’d have what it takes if she ever did join…” Yunnan huffed, rolling her eyes. Lady Olivia was as high strung and stuck up as she was dainty and regal.
Marcy paid her amphibian chaperones, running further and further into the depths of the moist green forest, lost in her own happiness and the heavenly green depths of the forest. She looked around, narrowly dodging low hanging branches and vines as her eyes darted from place to place, searching for something interesting and unusual enough to send back to the scientists.
Her eyes eventually caught something bright blue resting on the trunk of a rather tall tree. She stopped running, wobbling a little at the sudden stop but luckily steadying herself before she could fall down. She slowly made her way over to the tree, the bright blue thing coming into view.
It was a butterfly, as big as her hand, with bright cerulean wings that looked like blue glass, with their shiny, bright and slightly see-through appearance.
She was amazed by the beauty of the creature, it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen...Well, she thought that about every new creature she saw in the laboratory, but seeing this creature surrounded by its natural habitat, completely serene and not distressed or in a sterile cage, just added to it’s beauty and wonder.
She remembered her agreement to bring back anything new she saw, quickly and carefully taking the small specimen jar out of the back pack on her back and opening the lid, slowly bringing the jar closer, preparing to trap the butterfly inside as quickly and carefully as she could….
Only for the butterfly to swiftly fly up, fluttering up into the air and flying out farther into the forest.
“ Hey! You lil jerk!” Marcy muttered, sprinting away after the butterfly.
The little blue butterfly kept fluttering away into the forest, the bright blue of its wings appearing to glow within the dark green of the forest, the light within the forest becoming less and less as
Marcy ran deeper into the forest, the treetops creating a dark green ceiling made up of leaves and branches and a few falled abandoned bird’s nests.
Marcy’s eyes slowly adjusted to the sudden, shady darkness of the area she had entered, the blue butterfly becoming harder to see with the absence of light. She kept running, refusing to let the little blue butterfly out of her sight, hell bent on catching the sapphire winged creature.
She picked up her pace, feeling a strain on her breathing as she forced herself to run faster. She felt the backpack on her back was weighing her down, and quickly threw it off of her, keeping a hold of the glass jar as she grew closer and closer to the butterfly.
The butterfly was now just above her head. She smiled, lifting the jar and lid up, quickly crouching down and then jumping up, bringing the jar up under the butterfly and watching as the insect was pulled down into the jar before slamming the lid on top of it, screwing it shut.
Marcy opened her mouth to exclaim in delight, but instead a scream of surprise emitted from her mouth as she felt herself falling down some kind of great, gaping space beneath her.
She’d been so distracted with catching the butterfly that she’d failed to notice the enormous gully in front of her.
Marcy fell for a minute or so, struck with shock and fear, the jar with the butterfly in it falling from her hands as she flailed around for something to hold on to. Then, she fell to the ground, feeling the impact of hard ground on her back and yelping loudly in pain.
The jar fell down onto her chest, the impact sending a dull, deep pain through her chest and knocking the air out of her.
For a brief few minutes, Marcy wondered if she’d died, the pain vibrating through her back and chest stunning her still, refusing to let her breathe, the whole world growing still and silent around her.
After a few seconds, she felt air rush into her lungs as her body recovered from the sudden blows, Marcy gasping as she started to breathe again. She groaned softly as she slowly sat up, her back unbelievably sore.
She looked around, taking in her surroundings. She had landed in a rather large gully, a rather old gully too, based on the numerous exposed tree roots that grew around the inner walls of grooved and jagged rock that surrounded her, thick patches of dark moss covering the lower areas of the rock. A thick carpet of both freshly fallen and rotting leaves covered the bottom of the gully, and, hopefully, had prevented Marcy from cracking any of her spinal vertebrae upon her landing.
Marcy took a few moments to recover, lying back down, wincing in pain. She slowly flexed her arm and legs, flexing her fingers and toes and bending her neck, checking to see if she if she’d sustained any serious, paralyzing spinal damage from the fall. She hadn’t hit her head, so thankfully she didn’t need to worry about being concussed or sustaining any brain injuries. She’d still ask for a full examination once she got back to the laboratory though, couldn’t risk anything.
She looked to her side, seeing the bright blue wings of the butterfly flapping wildly within the glass jar. She smiled lightly, slowly sitting back up and picking the jar up, eyeing the butterfly.
“ You lil jerk….I hope you’re some kinda new undiscovered specimen or something that’ll be worth the injuries…..” she said hoarsely, slowly standing up,legs wobbling. She slowly leaned forward,grabbing onto a tree root to steady herself,breathing through the pain and holding the jar to her likely deeply bruised chest.
She looked around…..She’d have to climb up the stone walls and get back up…..Hopefully her back wouldn’t hurt so much when she did….
The sudden screech of a bird shook her from her thoughts.
The scientists said there’d be birds around….But they also said they’d be away during this time of the year….
Maybe she should warn Lady Olivia and General Yunnan-
OH CRUD.
She’d completely forgotten about them!!! Had they even followed her?? Did they know where she was?? She had to find them!!
She looked around,looking for anything that could aid her in climbing out of the gully. Her eyes darted around,eventually spying a few exposed tree roots that looked thick and stable enough for her to step up on, and a few jags of rock looked strong enough that she could pull herself up on them and crawl over out of the gully and back into the forest from the area shed fallen from.
Slowly,she walked toward them,glass jar with the butterfly in it under her right arm. She slowly put her left foot onto one root,then grabbed onto another root that was above her head with her left hand , hoisting herself up and inhaling sharply as she heard the root beneath her feet creak under the weight of her foot.
She held the jar under her arm tightly as her other hand reached for a small jag of rock,then slowly lifted her other foot onto a nearby root. Once she felt secure,she quickly lifted her left foot onto another root,then grabbed the jag above the jag she’d been holding onto, wincing as she felt the sharp edge of the rock dig into the thin skin of her palm. She ignored the pain, slowly grabbing into the other jag above her,feeling the jar slip.
She lifted her other leg quickly,stepping onto a low jag and then quickly letting go of the jag cutting into her hand,pushing the jar further under her arm. She wondered if she’d even make it out without the jar falling and smashing….
She looked up….only a bit more to go….
She lifted her left foot onto a low jag,then grabbed another jag with her right hand,slowly and carefully pulling herself up from jag to jag,pushing the jar up into her arm every so often,her hands meeting the top of the gully after a few minutes.
Once she felt moist moss and damp,hard earth touch her fingers and sink into her fingernails,she quickly took the jar up from under her arm and reached up,setting it down on the ground above.
After climbing up a few more jags and digging her fingernails into the earth above to secure herself, she was able to hoist herself above the top of the gully,then dragged herself out of the gully,standing up shakily as she finally found herself above the gully’s edge and back on the forest ground.
She groaned,her back sore as ever, and soon found her balance to be failing as her legs wobbled again,leaning forward so that she fell forward and not backwards right back into the gully.
She fell to the ground, yelping as her bruised chest was hit by the hard earth.She took a minute to recover before slowly getting up and steadying herself, then spotted the jar.
Unbroken,undamaged,the bright blue butterfly fluttering around inside.
She sighed with relief,going over and picking it up. She looked at the blue butterfly,smiling.Thank frog it was safe….
The loud, hoarse screech of a bird accompanied by frantic screaming soon made the relief Marcy felt flee her , replaced with a sudden overpowering fear as she remembered why she’d dragged herself out of the gully.
General Yunnan and Olivia…..
Marcy’s heart was beating a mile a minute, adrenaline rushing through her veins as she began sprinting into the forest,clutching the jar to her chest tightly,following the sounds of the bird screeches and screams.
”GENERAL YUNNAN!! LADY OLIVIA!!!” She cried out, terrified.
Please let them be alright….
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Yunnan and Lady Olivia hadn’t meant to lose track of Marcy.
After their small bickering session, they’d both noticed that Marcy had run off into the forest, which meant that both now had to go look for Marcy, wherever she’d went, which wouldn’t be too hard as the earth was a bit squishy and had Marcy’s boot prints visible in it.
They’d followed her tracks, Lady Olivia complaining and fretting loudly.
”That stupid girl just couldn’t be patient could she?? Oh dear frog if she’s injured King Andrias is going to have my head cut off and mounted along with the heron and barbari-Ants heads in his study!! Oh dear frog….” The light blue newt fretted,looking from side to side rapidly,trying to see if she could catch a glimpse of the young human she’d been supposed to watch over.
”Eeeugh….it’s so hot and damp in here…..Frog knows how many filthy,dangerous animals are waiting for us to walk right into their plane of vision so they can run up and eat us….Or just kill and mangle us for its own entertainment..”
“Lady Olivia PLEASE settle yourself and cease your fretting! Marcy will be okay! She’s a strong, resilient girl. Besides, I doubt she’s gone too far, and she’s likely not in any major danger.” General Yunnan said, attempting to reassure her anxious companion. Marcy was stronger than most would think. She was very intelligent, quick witted, and her combat skills had been improving significantly.
General Yunnan was sure she’d be okay.
That was, until she heard the girl scream echo out from somewhere far into the woods.
The two amphibians both froze, then bolted forward in the direction of the scream, ice cold terror flooding through their veins.
“MARCY!!???MARCY??!!” Yunnan yelled, running as fast as she could, her fear increasing when she got no response.
“ I KNEW IT I KNEW SHE WAS GOING TO GET HERSELF HURT!!” Lady Olivia wailed, running as fast as she could, Yunnan ahead of her, slashing at any vines, bushes and other obstacles that stood in their way as she raced further into the forest, heart pounding in her chest like a war drum.
Shit shit shit shit SHIT!!!! She should’ve kept her eye on her, if she’d just kept her eyes on her instead of responding to Lady Olivia’s stupid retort they wouldn’t be in this situation…..
The sound of a bird screeching above them made her look up in time to see the underside of a large bird swoop over the trees, casting it’s vast shadow over them for a brief second before it flew away. Lady Olivia screamed and froze, trembling in fear, going pale.
“ We’re. Going. To. Die. Here.” She whined, tearing up in fear.
” It was only a bird! The royal scientists said they’d be around and that they wouldn’t bother us! Now quit your sniveling and come on! Marcy’s the one we’re worried about! Not you!!!” General Yunnan yelled as she kept running ahead, terrified…..What if Marcy had gotten seriously injured??? She hadn’t heard any more screams….
Lady Olivia began running behind her, feeling like she was on the verge of a fear and stress induced heart attack. As soon as they found Marcy and made sure she was alive and not seriously injured, she was going to make it VERY clear to her that there would be no more scouting missions….At least as long as she was forced to go along with them….
General Yunnan wasn't even bothering to slice away any foliage and other obstacles out of the way at this point- She just ran through or trampled over them, fear taking over and adrenaline numbing her to any kind of physical feeling. She was looking around frantically, trying to keep track of Marcy’s footprints in the marshy earth, the grass getting taller as she ran farther into the forest. The taller the grass got, the more difficult it was to see Marcy’s tracks.
Lady Olivia kept running, trying to keep up with General Yunnan, panicked and getting out of breath. She opened her mouth to yell at Yunnan to wait up for her when she felt her foot slip in an especially slick patch of mud, Lady Olivia losing balance and falling to the ground, feeling even more mud splash onto her entire front side and face.
She quickly picked herself up, peeling her now mud drenched gloves from her arms and using her hands- which she now felt were the only parts of her body not coated in muck and forest filth- and scraped the mud that had covered her squeezed-shut eyes from her eyelids, slowly opening them.
General Yunnan was nowhere in sight.
She’d forgotten about her, too lost in fear and wanting to find Marcy to care about the other newt.
“ Oh FROG!” Lady Olivia yelled, pulling on her mud matted, twig filled hair in frustration. She huffed, trying to see if she could follow any of the tracks Yunnan had left behind in the muddy earth.
Unfortunately for her the tall grasses were obscuring the ground, which meant she’d have to try and push through them to see any tracks.
“ Fucking Frog….” Lady Olivia muttered, trying to push the grass out of the way with her foot to look at the ground, looking for tracks.
Suddenly, she felt something huge fall to the ground, the tall grass behind her being blown back in her direction, brushing against her as she froze where she stood.
Lady Olivia slowly looked behind her, terrified of what she’d see.
A few feet away from her stood a sparrow- like the kind the Newtopian army used as steeds...But this wasn’t a tamed sparrow, it wasn’t the one they’d taken to get to the forest that had been resting just outside the forest when they’d gone into the forest either-it was a wild one.
The sparrow was dirty looking, the light colored undersides of the bird were discolored and dirty, patches of dried mud on it’s undersides and wings. It had a few scratches on its face and legs, and upon looking more at the bird, Lady Olivia noticed that it’s left eye had a large scar running vertically down it, the eye itself swollen shut and puffy, clearly infected from the wound. The other eye was swollen and puffy as well, barely open, which meant that the infection must have spread to the other eye or that the other eye had also gotten injured from something.
The bird also appeared agitated….Very agitated.
The bird looked at Lady Olivia with it’s beady, barely open eye, then screeched loudly, Lady Olivia screaming in fear and running as fast as she could, completely forgetting about looking for General Yunnan as she ran for her life, the sparrow hopping after her, chirping and squawking, following the screaming, small creature through the forest.
General Yunnan had gotten farther into the forest when she’d heard the scream and had realized that Lady Olivia hadn’t been following her.
“SHIT!”
She turned and started running, then was suddenly knocked to the ground as something rammed into her from her right side.
General Yunnan groaned, then bolted up, unsheathing her switchblade claws, preparing to attack. She looked down to see Marcy, who was getting up, groaning and rubbing her back, holding a glass jar with something bright blue in it.
“Marcy!!! Thank frog you're okay!!!” General Yunnan sighed in relief, Marcy smiling softly.
“ Glad to see you’re okay too! But where’s Lady Olivia?” Marcy asked.
Another loud, shrill, terrified scream from Lady Olivia resounded from behind them, thus giving the answer to Marcy’s question.
Marcy and General Yunnan started running in the direction of the scream, hearing both Lady Olivia’s screaming and the screeches and chirps of a bird as they got closer and closer.
After a few minutes they got to where Lady Olivia was, along with the sparrow that had been pursuing her. Lady Olivia was currently in a small, hollow crater left from a tree falling down and leaving a crater of torn up earth and hollow ground beneath where the tree had once stood. The sparrow stood above her, repeatedly trying to peck at her as she rolled frantically from side to side, whining and whimpering in fear.
“Fear not Lady Olivia! I’ll take care of this!! Marcy, you stay there.” General Yunnan said before she ran forward, switchblade claws both unsheathed. She’d dealt with untame sparrows
before, they were no big deal!
She got behind the bird, then swung her claws, blades slicing across the wild bird’s back. The sparrow screeched loudly in pain, whipping around and glaring at General Yunnan with it’s swollen eye.
“ COME AT ME YA FEATHERED SACK OF SHIT!!!” General Yunnan yelled, raising her claws once more.
The sparrow shot forward, it’s beak opening and promptly chomping down on the claws. The thin metal blades crunched, then suddenly snapped, the shining silver blades falling to the ground and becoming lost in the tall grasses.
General Yunnan froze, the color draining from her face.
The switchblade claws were swift, sharp and strong, yes,,,When it came to slicing and swiping at things from a slight distance or slicing things that were coming at her quickly.
But when it came to direct, strong pressure on them….The thin metal snapped, as if they were as weak as toothpicks.
“ Oh...Fuck.” Yunnan said lowly, looking up as the bird let out a loud screech, lunging at her.
General Yunnan jumped back, then swiped at the bird with the glove that hadn’t gotten it’s claws broken, slashing the bird across the top of it’s head, the bird screeching again and swinging it’s head in Yunnan’s direction, biting down hard on her wrist and jumping up into the air, Yunnan suddenly being pulled up into the sky as the bird took flight. Thinking fast, Yunnan took her glove off, falling down a few feet and landing on her feet, feeling the wet ground sink underneath her and rise a little above her boots.
The sparrow flew above them in a circle, dropping Yunnan’s glove, the glove falling down fingers-first to the ground, the blades sinking fully into the earth upon impact. Yunnan went to go grab the glove when the bird suddenly dove down, mouth wide open.
Yunnan jumped out of the way, the bird swooping over the ground and flying towards Yunnan. Yunnan jumped at the sparrow, punching it hard in it’s scarred eye.
The bird screeched louder than it had previously, flying back up. Lady Olivia only just starting to crawl out of the crater she’d been taking shelter in.
“YUNNAN WE NEED TO RUN!” Lady Olivia yelled, Yunnan busy eyeing the bird as it flew clumsily in the sky, clearly in a lot of pain.
The sparrow heard the newt’s yelling and immediately dove down, mouth open as it aimed to catch Lady Olivia, who, upon seeing the bird, sprang to her feet and ran as fast as she could towards Yunnan, screaming loudly.
The bird fell to the ground with a loud thump, it’s beak getting stuck in the soft earth. It pulled itself up, the tip of it’s beak covered in mud and it’s partially open eye full of rage. Lady Olivia stood beside Yunnan, cowering in fear as the general squared up, prepared to fight the bird to the death.
Marcy looked on,hiding behind a tree and looking on.
For as skilled a fighter as Yunnan was, the bird was bigger,and had a very,very hard and sharp beak,as it had proved when it had broken her switchblade claws, and with Lady Olivia trying to hide behind her and escape the situation only got more worrisome,as the bird seemed determined to get both amphibians.
Marcy couldn’t just stand there anymore, She HAD to do something!
But what could she do??
She had no weapons on her,and she wasn’t exactly a seasoned warrior like Yunnan.
She tried to think….What could they do to get the bird to go away or maybe….Maybe trap it somewhere….
The gully.
She sort of remembered where it was. If they could get the bird to fall into it, it was deep enough that it could maybe get stuck down there…
But first she had to distract it.
“HEY!!BIRD!!COME HERE!” Marcy yelled.
The bird paid her no attention, instead pecking at General Yunnan, who jumped back, Lady Olivia screaming and jumping back, falling down to the ground, flat on her back, quickly scooting away as the bird looked down at her, General Yunnan punching it on the side of the face, the bird swinging it’s head into her, Yunnan being thrown back into a tree, groaning as she sank to the ground, knocked unconscious from the impact of her head against the tree.
“ YUNNAN!!” Lady Olivia and Marcy screamed in unison, Lady Olivia screaming again as the bird stepped closer to her, looking at her hungrily.
Marcy was frozen stiff with fear. She had to act now, but her yelling hadn’t worked. She had to think of something else, find something that’d make a noise that’d be loud or different enough to distract it…
That's when she looked down at the glass jar in her hands.
Maybe if she could smash the jar...It’d be loud enough.
But that would mean letting the butterfly go….The one she could’ve died trying to get.
But then again….Who was more important to her? Some little butterfly she’d found in the forest, or her royal caretaker and mentor and her combat teacher, both of whom she had known since she’d first come to Amphibia?
She took one last look at the blue butterfly,then unscrewed the lid,watching as it flew out,fluttering brightly amongst the dark green trees around her.
”Ill find you again some other day…” she whispered.
She then held the jar up,and proceeded to throw it against a tree,the sound of glass shattering loudly causing both Lady Olivia and the sparrow to look at Marcy.
“HEY BIRD!! COME AND GET ME!!” Marcy yelled as loud as she could, the sparrow chirping and running towards her.
Marcy started running, looking behind her every minute or so to make sure it was following her.
“COME AND GET ME!!” She screamed again,quickly retracing her steps to where the gully was.
“MARCY!!!” Lady Olivia was tailing them, absolutely terrified that the girl was going to get herself killed by the bird as it ran towards her, chirping and flapping it’s wings,preparing to take flight if needed to catch the creature it was currently pursuing.
Marcy kept running,trying to stay within the birds sight while being far enough away from it that it wouldn’t catch her. After a little while of Marcy running and trying to avoid things in her path,as well as trying to stifle her natural clumsiness, she saw the clearing and the opening of the gully, and she quickly began to think of how she’d carry out her plan.
She ran as fast as she could, stopping right near the edge of the gully, the sparrow running right at her, it’s eye fixated on her.
“Come.And.Get me.” Marcy growled, waiting until she heard the bird right behind her before quickly turning and running to the side, the sparrow turning it’s head to look at her, which proved to be a mistake as it lost it’s footing and fell into the gully, screeching as it fell to the bottom with a dull, loud thud.
Lady Olivia quickly ran into the clearing and came to a sudden halt, seeing Marcy standing over by the edge of the gully, looking down.
“DEAR FROG YOU STUPID GIRL!! THAT THING COULD HAVE KILLED YOU!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED I WAS???” Lady Olivia yelled, marching over to the young human, ready to pass out from both relief and stress.
“Shush!!” Marcy said, looking down at the bird.
It wasn’t moving...It looked exhausted...The scar across its eye looked painfully inflamed….
Marcy felt a sudden wave of guilt wash over her. She slowly got down, lowering her foot down onto a jag of rock.
’”What are you doing??” Lady Olivia asked, her eyes on the great bird that now lay in the gully.
“ Just hold on a minute….” Marcy said quietly, slowly stepping down, using the jags of rock and tree roots as steps and handles once again, this time going down instead of up.
She soon found herself at the bottom of the gully, the large bird at her feet, breathing slowly and softly. She slowly kneeled down, carefully reaching out and lightly stroking it’s head.
The bird opened it’s good eye, looking over at her. Marcy looked into it’s eye, noticing how it too was as puffy as it’s scarred eye.
It was so…. Full of sadness.
Full of pain.
Full of hunger.
Poor thing probably couldn’t see that good, must’ve made it hard to find and hunt food.
Maybe that was why it was chasing them. It was hungry because it couldn’t find food, and once it heard them screaming and yelling and could detect them, it’d had no choice but to chase and try and hunt them, otherwise Frog knows when it’d be able to find food.
” Aww….I’m sorry…” Marcy whispered softly, the bird letting out a small, weak chip in response.
Marcy slowly brought her hand to it’s side, sneaking her hand beneath the matted feathers on it’s side. The sparrow felt bony, too bony, even for a bird.
”MARCY!! OLIVIA?!?!?!”
The sound of Yunnan yelling from far back into the forest made Marcy and Lady Olivia look up.
” WE’RE OVER HERE!! MARCY TOOK THE BLOODY BEAST DOWN!!” Lady Olivia yelled back.
“SERIOUSLY??!! HOLY FUCK MARCY!!” Yunnan yelled, the sound of grass and twigs being crunched becoming slowly audible as Yunnan started getting closer.
”....We need to take the sparrow back with us…..” Marcy said, still petting the sparrow.
“WHAT??!” Lady Olivia yelled, General Yunnan coming into the clearing, panting heavily.
“What was that Marcy?” She asked, looking down at the now defeated sparrow.
“Go back to the castle Yunnan, Lady Olivia can stay with me. Tell the royal scientists we need them to come here with some medical supplies and maybe a streatcher and backup bird to carry the sparrow back if needed. They’re injured and starving, we can’t just leave them here!”
“ Are you sure?” Yunnan asked, confused as to why Marcy was suddenly so concerned about the beast.
”Yes!! It needs food!” Marcy said. “ We need to give it food and medicine for it’s eyes so they dont go blind!”
“......Are you sure….?” General Yunnan asked again.
“Yes!! Now go, quickly!”
General Yunnan looked at Marcy, then at the sparrow, then back at Marcy, then sighed and nodded, running back through the forest, trying to navigate her way back to the entrance to the forest.
“Have you gone MAD?!?! That filthy creature tried to kill us all!” Lady Olivia yelled, outraged that Marcy was seriously asking to let the monstrous bird come with them.
“Only because it was hungry!! It’s eyes are all injected and they probably can't see that well, can’t hunt as well either….It just needs some medical care, food and a place to recover…”
Marcy knew how the bird felt, in a way….How it felt to be left alone to fend for yourself, left to find food for yourself even if you couldn’t really find it or get to it by yourself….
How it felt to be afraid.
“It’ll come with us….Maybe we can tame it and it can join the other royal sparrows….Maybe he can be my sparrow! I’ll train him myself and care for him!”
Marcy bounced a little, gently scratching the bird’s wing, getting a few small chirps from the bird, prompting her to scratch more.
“Marcy….You’re getting ahead of yourself child! You can’t just take a wild animal from the forest and try and make it into a pet, if that's what you’re thinking! And the sparrows we use have all been bred and born in captivity, so they’re very different from this one!” She kept her eyes on the sparrow, which now appeared to be rather docile and tolerant compared to how it’d been mere minutes before.
“ But it can’t be so different! C’mon! Please! Besides, it'd be cruel to just let it stay here! The poor thing is all skin and bones and feathers! It could go blind from the eye infection it has and then die from starvation! Or get killed by a predator, or die slowly and painfully from some disease brought on by the cut on it’s eye, or eat something poisonous or deadly and-”
“ALRIGHT ALRIGHT you’ve made your point child!” Lady Olivia gave an exhausted sigh.”...Just make sure that thing doesn’t try and eat you or any of us again.”
Marcy smiled, looking down at the sparrow, who was now weakly trying to nuzzle against her hand.
“It’s okay, you won’t be alone anymore….” She said softly. The bird chirped at her, then turned it’s head to the side, Marcy looking in the direction the sparrow was looking.
The blue butterfly was up in the air, flying above them, bobbing up and down ever so slightly as it fluttered around.
“ It’s you!” Marcy said softly, smiling even wider. She’d wondered if she’d even find it again!
Unfortunately, without the specimen jar she couldn’t really bring it back to the lab. But that was okay. She could let the butterfly go, let it be free in the forest where it belonged. Who was she to take it from it’s home anyway? It deserved to be free….
She sighed, eyes locked on the butterfly, fingers running through the sparrow’s feathers as it slowly laid it’s head down, chirping softly. She thought back to when she’d first entered the forest, not knowing the events to come, simply running through the great green forest, free of all burdens and rules and expectations, with nothing but pure wonder in her mind and joy in her heart.
Marcy slowly began to realize something. It was there, as she’d been running through the forest for the first time, that she’d felt something she had never felt before, ever.
Something she’d been denied to feel since her early childhood.
Something she wondered she’d ever feel again after she returned to the palace.
For the first time in her life….
She’d felt free.