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In days, months, years to come, she’d wonder about why she did it. What had it been about her friends and frogs and toads that led her to the actions she’d taken? Why, when all was said and done, had she set forth on a path she knew would separate them again? Had it been over-confidence? The heart-wrenching sting of her friends throwing her away? Jumping face first into shark infested waters? Once she’d started, it was like she was adrift in the sea, lost in the current despite the hands held out to her. Marcy and Anne had never wanted to let her go.
Maybe that was why she did it, too. The further she pushed, the easier their separation would be, even if she’d never wanted it. She’d found her place with the toads; with this group of royally directed militants unfairly treated. She’d risen to command and made something of herself. In Amphibia, she had a station and purpose. She didn’t need Marcy and Anne for that. If they wanted to stay with her, if they wanted to continue their friendship after abandoning her first, she’d gladly take them in with open arms. After she and Grime and the toads had secured Newtopia, everything would fall into place.
She was wrong.
Her footsteps echoed in the desolate cavern, loose rock crunching underfoot as she made her way forth. The light was minimal, and her hand on the wall really was the only thing keeping her stable and steady. The rock was coarse, grit, but solid. The path underfoot was rougher, loose rock and sudden holes a nightmare for her safety: she’d nearly tripped numerous times on this walk, not that she had any way around it.
There was always the option of stopping, but stopping meant death. Sasha wasn't at that point in her life anymore.
She had been, once. Dangling hundreds of feet off a tower, death was the only option available to her. Meet her inevitable doom alone, or drag Anne with her. She still didn't know what miracle played a hand in her survival, but it wasn't one she would take for granted just yet. The sound of water dripping tickled her ears, and she shook her head. There was no water here. She hadn’t passed a stream or puddle or body of water in stars knew how long. Miles upon miles. Hours upon days upon minutes. With the amount of time she’d spent in the dark, walking, she was certain she’d have to have crossed that threshold of travel by now.
Or you could have been going in circles, her treacherous mind whispered to her. It was possible, but she did her best to shake thoughts like that away. Her negativity had been growing louder, and something about isolation and sanity curled around the edges of her awareness. People were social, she remembered, from one fuck-all school lesson who knew how long ago. Animals were social too, except for a few choice ones. They liked to spend time together. They grew agitated if they couldn't; stunted growth, or something.
Sasha couldn't remember ever having been alone. Not truly alone. Not after Anne and Marcy, and not until now. Even her first month in Amphibia had been kept in a tower which, while annoying, had been spent accosting guards into conversation and convincing them to her side. Grime had stuck with her after that, and they'd stayed together through the invasion of Newtopia.
The invasion of Newtopia. The invasion that secured her spot as ruler, for a few precious hours. The invasion that had her most precious things pit against her. The invasion that, in the aftermath, had led to so much blue, so much fighting, pain, betrayal, heat-death the size of the sun at fingertips she couldn’t fight against.
The invasion that had landed her here, under the city, alone. The invasion that proved that Sasha Waybright just wasn’t meant to have nice things.
She gripped rock hard under her palm. The path split: a right branch and a left branch. She inhaled deeply. There wasn’t anything to it; her path wasn't a choice so much as it was the fate of choosing to lead along the wall with her left hand. If her trek forward was pointless, at least she’d find her way back to this spot. It was a certainty.
You'd still be going in circles though, wouldn't you? she thought. Maybe that was true. But she had to find some way out of here. The visage of a body flashed through her mind’s eye. She had to try everything, before she gave up.
How long have we been down here? How many times had she asked that question, already? It had to be at least a few days. Nothing more than a week. She hadn’t been down here longer than that.
Are you sure? She wasn't, but it wasn’t as if she had any other choice but to believe it. Everything she told herself was for a purpose. She needed to keep going. Somewhere in these caverns was the thing she was looking for, even if she didn't know exactly what it was.
I'm getting tired, the slippery voice in her mind caved. I need to rest.
Had she really been walking for that long?
Maybe a rest wouldn't hurt, but…
She should keep going.
I wonder what Anne is doing right now, came a thought unbidden. It caught her off guard, but maybe it shouldn't have. Her pace slowed down to a crawl. She's probably back home. Stars, I hope she's back home. Anne had nothing to do with this. She'd gone through the portal to earth safely, and with the box in Amphibia, there was no way for her to reach them again. She’ll forget all about us.
It'd be for the best. After everything she’d done-
“Sasha?”
She blinked, unaware that she’d taken to the ground. Marcy stood before her, kind smile on her face as she outstretched her arm. Sasha took it without thinking.
“You alright, Sash? You look like you've seen a ghost.”
A ghost? There was no way. Sasha Waybright didn’t get scared, and there was nothing here that could ever constitute being ghostly in nature. “Just lost in thought,” she muttered.
“You? Thinking?” Marcy’s voice was a balm to the loneliness that permeated her being. It was a reprieve she was grateful for. The ground was stable under her feet, but once she was standing, she didn't let Marcy’s hand go. “I didn't know you did that.”
The words were good-natured, but they made Sasha bristle instinctively. She growled low in her throat, a warning inherited, and gripped Marcy’s hand just a bit tighter. Her fingers were cold. It made sense, being who-knows-how far below the earth they were. It was freezing in these caves, draft from stars-knew-where dragging ice down any skin that had the misfortune of being exposed. There was nothing more to it. “Watch it.”
“Sorry, sorry. We’re just not used to it.” Their fingers intertwined.
Sasha looked at her. “We?”
Marcy looked at her back, confusion lacing her expression. “...Me? What about us? Are you okay?”
She huffed. “I’m fine.” She’d misheard. It wasn't like it was the end of the world; not that she’d admit to her faux pas. Marcy didn’t comment on it, so it didn't matter. She did let go of Sasha's hand to skip ahead, though.
“If you say so, Sash.” She mourned the loss of... What? “Anyway, my estimates determine that what we’re looking for should be just ahead- come on.” Forward she went, disappearing into the blackness of the dim light. Sasha cursed, and sped up to catch up with her.
Only, there was no trace of Marcy around. No matter how far she ventured, she couldn’t catch hide nor hair of her companion. Where could she have gone? Had she missed her or something?
Maybe you passed her up. Maybe. It was certainly possible that Marcy had headed out into some nook or cranny Sasha couldn't find. She pushed herself away from the wall, finally breaking contact, and turned to retrace her steps. The cavern slanted, paths she didn't recognize tangling up together the further she backtracked. Something was… strange.
She did find Marcy eventually, though. The narrow tunnel widened out into a large clearing, crystal light minerals along the walls coloring the area in soothing light. Marcy was near the back, inspecting something along the far wall. Her journal was out, and the magenta light made her radiant. At the entrance, Sasha paused for a moment, content on watching her. Marcy continued her work, and as the crystals pulsed blue, Sasha stepped forward, relief at finding Marcy permeating her being. Her gait was far more relaxed than the brisk pace she had forced herself to take to arrive here.
“What are we even looking for?” she asked, and Marcy continued writing without looking up.
“We’re trying to find-” Her voice petered off into a whisper.
Sasha strode closer, soft green glow playing along the edges of her vision.
“What was that?”
“I said, we’re trying to-” Marcy’s mouth moved, but she couldn’t hear the words. She didn’t need to, though. Marcy sighed, and tucked away the journal. She made her way to Sasha, and as their eyes met, Sasha’s heart beat once, a harsh thing that left her stupefied. Marcy was beautiful, she realized.
Everything about her, from her passion, to her ability, to her dazzling eyes, a light enough brown they shifted tangerine in the similar lighting. Marcy stopped in front of her, pushing herself up on her tiptoes as she drew near. Her hand caressed Sasha's jaw, and her breath along her ear sent fire through her.
“I said-” she whispered hungrily, and Sasha was left staring at the pulsing blue stone across from her. It commanded her attention, just like Marcy did, her head fuzzy and senses swimming. Marcy said more, and she didn’t hear it, but it must have been important because Sasha nodded and followed along. Marcy intertwined their hands once more, and she felt like she was floating. They were going somewhere, but she didn't have the sense to figure out where. There must have been another entryway; a door, something, because her legs met twists and turns with ease, the sound of Marcy’s voice keeping her afloat.
That, and the wonderfully pleasant hue of the room. The visual stimulation sent a favoritive buzz through her system, and Marcy sat her down. There was something else they were supposed to be doing, wasn't there? They were looking for something, but Marcy must have found what it was, because the crystals pulsed a color Sasha’s human form couldn't comprehend, and she felt an inferno within her ignite. Her head swam.
Marcy returned, and with her was a newt. At least, Sasha thought it was a newt. They were speaking, but Sasha couldn't hear them. The newt stepped closer, and her first instinct was to recoil away, to run, but why would she do that? In its hands was a crystal the same beautiful red as the cave, and if the cave liked the newt, why wouldn't Sasha? It was Marcy’s friend, after all. And that was why Sasha was here: she was Marcy's friend. She would do anything for marcy. Whatever Marcy wanted, Sasha would do; even if it was sitting down and holding her arm out for her friend to devour. That was what friends did, after all, wasn’t it? Whatever Marcy wanted, all she had to do was-
Pain lacing her body brought her world back into focus, alarm bells blaring at concerning volume. She screamed, arm caught in the jaws of a beast, and Marcy was nowhere to be found. The cave was a toxic red-green-orange, and she kicked against the beast to try and free herself.
No luck. The teeth lodged themselves into muscle close enough to bone. Getting them out would mean losing her arm, and there was no way she could allow that.
We can, her mind whispered, only it wasn't her mind but the tendril of something ink-black and sticky, carting sludge along each of her thoughts. The sensation made her gag, and she kicked at the beast once more. Let's go back to sleep, Sasha. It was so nice. Let's go back to sleep.
NO, she screamed, and let it out physically for reassurance. Her voice echoed along the cave walls, and the being snapped its head to the left. Blades tore through her muscle and she screamed, reaching for a spare dagger that she should have, but didn’t. The beast snapped its head the other way, releasing her from its jaws as her back made heavy contact with the stone wall. Her arm went limp on her right, a bloody mangled mess that hurt to move, let alone use. She grit her teeth. Fuck.
Why do you resist us? the beast asked, peering at her with vicious orange. We can give you all you ever dreamed.
“We can help you, Sashy.”
Marcy was in front of her once more, paper doll’s smile stretched tight along her lips. The imposter crouched to her level, and Sasha snarled at it.
Marcy slapped her.
Or, at least, it had appeared to be marcy. The rough coating of the tail sent her flying once more, skidding across rock in a move she was sure would burn. Picking herself up was a difficult affair, but she wouldn't let herself give up. Whatever this thing was, it was out to kill her. That, she knew.
She searched around the cave as it drew nearer once more. “Let me help you, Sasha,” Marcy whispered behind her, pressure against her shoulders the color of rot. “You’re so hurt- let me take that away.”
“GET OUT OF MY HEAD!” she roared. Standing was perilous, and she shifted her weight too far to the left, but she didn't let herself fall. Just past the monster, she could see it. A small opening, too small for it to fit, leading outside of the area. Marcy’s hands made their way around her throat from behind, and she coughed. The beast lunged.
She ducked under it, phantom weight throwing off her already precarious balance. The crystals along the wall caught her eyes again, and she shut them closed. She couldn't allow herself to get ensnared in their aura again.
“Running won't help, Sasha.” She didn't know where Marcy was, but she heard the beast shuffle closer slowly. She took a step back. “Please-”
“NO!” Her roar was guttural, and she lashed out with her good hand. It made contact with nothing, of course, and she forced her eyes open. The newt had managed to move out of her range of sight again. Her heart raced. It wasn’t in front of her, nor was it behind her. Where..?
Instinct tore her out of its path as it dropped from the ceiling, seconds away from being crushed. She swallowed, and heaved. She tore loose rock and sand from the ground as she scuttled upright as quickly as her body would allow her. The beast was behind her, now, out of the way of the exit. In a maneuver timed as well as she could, she aimed and threw the debris in its eyes.
Lady luck held her hand, and her accuracy rang true. The beast snarled and lunged once more, blinded, but Sasha drew every force within her and leaped for the narrow exit. She tumbled within it, right arm seizing another wave of screams from her as the beast blew into the wall. It couldn’t fit, and Sasha backpedaled outside its range of motion. A dark snarl tore through the tentative silence, and her consciousness rocked with the sheer viciousness of the action.
FOOL! You think you can escape me? the beast asked, and Sasha didn’t respond, still trying to reorient herself from the way her chest convulsed. You will be back, Sasha Waybright. There are none who escape our grasp.
With each breath, she counted to three. Every heave was met with pain. Every motion was met with something Wrong.
Until next time, Sasha. Marcy’s voice whispered in her ear. “I’ll be back for you.”
And then she was alone. The silence of the cave was deafening once more.
She was.. alone.