Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

All it took were two open eyes.

Swirls of blue overhead, mixed in with the prettiest of pinks, accompanied by the clouds of pure white. The sky displayed quite the lovely sight, something like this being seen only a few times in your life. The way the wind felt around the face as well, bringing a comforting sensation to white, old hairs. The land was warm but not warm enough, not to where it’d bring sweat down a notably large forehead. In fact, everything had a simple feeling of tranquility that one couldn’t remember feeling for many, many years. The five senses did wonders in coordinating where someone could exactly be.

And that was just the thing. Where was… here?

Large, yellow eyes fully widened at the realization that something was very, very wrong. Then, the large figure quickly sat and stood from his place on the ground. The foundation itself? Pure, lush grass. Seeing something like that, while mesmerized by it, was something known to not be true. Plantlife was no longer that beautiful, no longer holding the life it should have. He knew, because everyone knew, because all life had been drained by machines and lost materials. He knew, because he was the cause behind the loss.

King Andrias knew, because on the next day he would not only strip his world of sentience, but also that of the fabled Earth.

So why?

The king hadn’t even given himself a proper look yet, and once he had he no longer bore his usual kingly attire. Rather, the newt was wearing clothes he’d never seen before. A white suit with grey buttons, alongside a nice, formal robe of similar colors to go along with it. His crown was even absent for the time being, a silent relief to come upon the realization. While the getup was nice, it didn’t eliminate the problem at hand. Really, the questions only grew in number by the time Andiras got a better look at his surroundings. The land was surrounded by beautiful colors of wildlife, the plants growing as if they’ve never been poisoned, and there were even polished relics of his people’s history that had to have dated back centuries. Things seem to be as they once were, all calm before the storm finally rolled in and ruined everything. Amphibia looked almost like it was brand new!

That’s what the king liked to believe, until he heard childish giggling coming from the side of the hill he supposedly awoke from. “Hey, come back here!” The child frog yelled out to another party, more than likely another child, and all seemed pleasant until… “Haha! Just try and catch me first!” Andrias’s eyes spotted the other child, and saw that the voice belonged to no amphibian. Why, the young frog was playfully chasing a… “Human?!” The king spat out in sheer surprise, going to the lengths of rubbing both of his eyes to try and see if this was all a mind’s trick. Lo and behold, the human remained human, and both children looked at him in confusion. Before Andrias could even begin to explain his outburst, the second child only snickered before running away again. The frog gasped and ran after the fleeing friend. “No fair! Wait up!” And just as soon as they came, the two were gone, again leaving the king all alone.

Andrias himself had to stand there for a good few minutes trying to process what just happened. A human child in Amphibia… and it certainly wasn’t any of the three he’d been so very accustomed to. The frog wasn’t recognizable either, which only added more to his puzzlement. He was in some sort of twisted Amphibia, was he not? So why was a human here? Why wasn’t there sheer panic over the sight of the thing?! He started to remember that he hated not knowing things, especially when they directly involved him. He still doesn’t even know why the world looks so peaceful, only yesterday was the land being used to fuel his needs for otherworldly concurring, so what could’ve caused this?

Well, perhaps standing out in the middle of nowhere wouldn’t be the smartest thing to do. Seeing as there were no other options, Andrias decided to make his way through the living hills and see where he’d end up. More specifically, he was more so trying to find someone to explain what was going on. No matter how far he could’ve, hypothetically, gone off the deep end, absolutely nothing could explain something like this. Did someone strand him here? Worse, was it possible that his ancestors could’ve banished him here? No, they… they wouldn’t do that, not with how well things were progressing, anyways.

So the newt walked. And walked, and walked. The nice thing about walking was that he was able to pick up a few things about this strange location. First, while there were still Amphibian relics out and about, there were also some structures he couldn’t quite recognize. There were a few tall, standing rocks for instance. That was certainly strange, but he found quite the appeal from them. There were also broken down castle walls, not ones from Newtopia that was for sure, but still shared that same appreciation the rocks did. Despite these new discoveries, Andrias never found himself stopping at them, still holding onto hoping that someone would suddenly appear and give him the answers he desired. Yet, with each step taken, there were no new beings. Just the continued path of grass.

He might have been walking for hours at that point, yet showed no signs of stopping. There wasn’t too much pain to be had when there was nothing there to give it to you, those elderly aches and pains were a thing of the past for old Andrias! Regardless of the lack of bones that could never break, the king was still finding himself at a loss for answers. Would he even find anything out here, or would he continue walking until he completely gave up? His hope was beginning to falter with all the time spent on his journey. Still, he kept going. Who could conquer an entire planet if it weren’t himself being there? The Core, probably, but he wouldn’t miss the opportunity for the world.

It would eventually come down to Andrias’s prayers being answered, as one last venture up a large, steep hill bestowed to him a sight he had been missing. The signs of civilization, a city overhead! “Oh, thank frog!” The king pleaded to only himself as he quickened his pace and began making his final race to the metropolis. While he made his way closer, though, he began to study the foundation more and realize that wait, cities like these don’t exist in Amphibia! Just as he was almost about to make his way inside the new area, Andrias froze in place, getting a good study out of the skyscrapers and eerily similar structures they were to the ones next to them. It was starting to seem that he’d ended up in a place that was almost… human. What does that make of all the Amphibian relics out and about, then? There were far too many questions at this point to simply ignore! King Andrias had to take the initiative and begin a full-on investigation!

Without another thought, he took the initiative and began the search to find the only answer to the ultimate question.

Why?

Chapter Text

There were a few, careful steps when it came to exploring the new terrain that made up the surrounding walls of skyscrapers and stone. Something like this was only seen in a futuristic fairy tale, far beyond the towns and buildings known back in the already fantasized Amphibia. For someone entirely new to the drastically different city, no, world, the sight in itself was almost frightening. However, there was nothing more terrifying than the presence that was now making himself known with his stride that could only belong to a king. Royalty here was begotten, as no one paid him any mind, not one recognition that he was the true King Andrias.

In fact, all the beings he’d seen as he progressed through town only resurfaced the questions asked back when he saw the two children playing upon his wake. Instead of one human and one frog, there were dozens of mammals and amphibians alike. The frogs, toads and newts he’d overseen for a thousand years now spoke peacefully with human neighbors, shopkeeps, and even total strangers. Nobody was batting an eye over this unspoken fusion of two worlds, as if humans and amphibians living together had always been a thing. The very thought of a realistic bond with the humans of Earth only made Andrias feel sick.

Even then, the city couldn’t possibly be all sunshines and rainbows, could it? The newt continued his way down the street, observing the surrounding area. None of the highly feared and oversized critters ran rampant through the streets and the terrain seemed untouched by malice and other unwanted matter that was simply a part of the land ever since all lands came to be. It was smooth and sleek, which made it easy for the speedy machines to maneuver around to their desired locations. Wait… those were those automobiles, weren’t they? Obviously Andrias hadn’t ever seen them, in fact only heard about their existence from… elsewhere.

The newt refused to look at the streets for the rest of his investigation.

Whether it be the lack of dangers from the terrain and no signs of monstrous life anywhere, it was a common belief that humans weren’t the friendliest species. Neither were the amphibians when ordered to strike, but it had been so long since something remotely of the sort had happened to such a large degree. These people, however, seemed to fight and continue doing so until one of them was dead. There were absolutely no signs of that here. Not even with his own kind, the ones who should’ve been seen as alien oddities. Nothing. Even when a city like this should have some sense of crime, there were no sinister vibes anywhere. Even in Newtopia there had been the occasional shady alleys! Why was his own ruling palace more heinous than this?!

Andrias was certainly unsettled by how undisturbed everything was. Everyone and everything was getting along so well… Surely it couldn’t be so. There was no logical explanation behind any of this. The king started questioning if this was all some fever dream, if he pinched himself he’d awaken from this audacity and things would proceed as normal. He attempted doing so, his blue fingers pinching through his white clothes, only to be met by a sharp pain returned by the gesture. This… this wasn’t a dream then, was it? That surely wasn’t doing favors for his already steadily growing worries. In fact, this only made him feel decently worse.

He gulped, but then his yellow eyes started looking around the area, trying to pick out one of the many pacifists on the sidewalk. The irises stopped on a nearby florist, a toad in fact, that was placing out their wares for display. Andrias could trust that. Quickly he paced over to outside the shop, quickly stopping right in front of the forest. With a pant from the light jog, Andrias gave a small wave and a nervous smile to his fellow amphibian.

“Greetings there!” The newt huffed out, still getting his bearings. “I couldn’t help but notice that you’re some kind of florist. That means you speak with plenty of clients, right?” The toad blinked up at the tall amphibian before nodding quickly. “Yes and yes. I am one of the most popular florists throughout this metropolis, see? Young, old, slimy, dry, I get them all!” They spoke with a hint of pride in their tone, all before they were seen tilting their head to the side. “That’s quite a strange question though. Can I ask why you’re asking?” The florist’s eyes squinted, now suspicious of their unbeknownst king.

The newt knew he had to ease the tension before things potentially got worse. Clearing his throat, he spoke with a chime. “So that means you sell your wares to humans too, don’t you? Not… not that there’s any issue with it, I’m only curious.” That was definitely choked out from deep inside Andrias, and the florist seemed to catch onto it right away. “Yeah? Why wouldn’t I? Just because humans are a little different from amphibians doesn’t mean we can’t help one another. That’s the most common rule amongst all rules. We’ve been living in tranquility like this ever since… well, ever since the beginning!” Now they looked agitated, taking a step back from Andrias’s presence.

“Something’s telling me you’re not from around here.”

That was when the king knew that it was his time to make a run for it.

“Uh- actually, I’ve just recently hit my head pretty hard in an automobile accident. Which I have to get to my appointment for… right now! Gotta go, toodaloo!” And the king did exactly as the fight or flight responses directed him to, quickly fleeing that part of town. Until he got things situated, it was in his best interest to not return to those parts for a while.

Again with more running, King Andrias shouldn’t have a need for running! He was fully aware of his stance as a ruler, but this city certainly didn’t. He highly doubted there was any form of government or hierarchy when everything acted so perfectly. It was starting to get on his nerves on how he wasn’t being regarded with the title he hadn’t removed from his name for over a thousand years. It was more than likely the lack of his crown that was causing the lack of nobility. Yeah, that was it.

A deep sigh escaped Andrias as he retraced back to all that he learned, saving his woes from the lack of appreciation for later. Leaning his back against a building’s wall, he shut his eyes to concentrate on what the florist told him. A common rule amongst all rules… the fact that these shared practices have been going on for eons… These lands had been built up with both human and amphibian needs combined, and given the rich history that was told to the newt by the journey through the alive barrens, this new world worked in ways that was perfect for both parties. With not one flaw, these people thrived and lived alongside one another, a livelihood that had never been burdened with the truth of reality.

It was all its own… utopia.

“What do you mean that both humans and amphibian… beings have coincided with each other all this time?”

Andrias’s eyes opened wide.

“It’s just like I’ve explained it the first three times! Humans and amphibians have been living together for practically forever! I’m not too sure on why you’re making such a big deal out of it.”

Andrias’s head turned, in fact his whole body turned to face the ongoing conversation in the distance. The sight he saw was a blue frog with a hat on his head, his hands held at his hips, looking rather offended at the person he was arguing with. That said person? Human. With slightly tanned skin, short, brown hair, black-rimmed glasses and a researcher’s outfit painted in complete white, a confused and conflicted look remained on his face as he looked at the shorter frog in distress. This somebody was definitely not like any of the others.

“I’m persistent in this because this is not normal. Never in my life have I seen so many talking frog figures. As fascinated as I am with you all, something has gone very wrong.” The human knelt down and put his hands to the frog’s shoulders, squeezing them with a wince in his eyes. “How did this… Did I…?” Without any answer, the frog squirmed out of the man’s embrace and readjusted his hat with a huff. “Look, I’m not quite sure what’s wrong with you, but maybe you should go see a counselor. Nobody’s ever quite needed one before, but it doesn't hurt to try.” With that, the frog stomped out of the area, wrapping his arms around himself.

And the human was left there, blinking in utter disbelief, as Andrias stared down the only man who’d bothered to start asking questions. He watched him stand up and sigh, shaking his head low, defeated. The king knew that this was a better time than any. Andrias walked towards the shorter human and looked down at him with a rather stern look.

“You’re not one of them, are you?” There was a look of surprise from the human as he forced his head to look upward, jaw agape at the sight such as himself. Good! At least someone here knew their place. Andrias watched his mouth close before he gave a firm nod. “I don’t believe I am. In fact, I have little to no idea what’s going on. I’ve never seen or heard of large amphibians with humanistic traits, beings just like-” “Myself?” Andrias cut in, tilting his head to the side. “Well, I’m sure you wouldn’t have known about someone like me, as disappointing as it is to admit that. You humans would find the idea of a newt king blasphemous, yet here I am, flesh and coldblood!” Andrias could let himself boast a little. Once he finished his investigation and returned things to normal, there would be no need to regard a human’s opinion on the matter anyways.

Yet this one was already proving himself far superior than all of them. “A king?! An amphibian king? Oh, my sincerest apologies, your majesty!” The man then bowed low with modesty, trying to appease the apparent royalty right in front of him. Ha! That was more like it! “But… you’re not a king I’ve heard of. Really, monarchy in general has been mostly disbanded for several centuries now. Especially to come and learn that you’re a speaking amphibian at that? It’s far beyond comprehension. I don’t think I can quite believe it.” Andrias winced at his words, but he couldn’t doubt the fact that the man had a point. This whole endeavor had been quite unbelievable, but just finding one person who understood something was wrong was satisfying enough. Even if he was human, it was the best he could ask for.

“Err… sorry for my ramblings. Speaking your mind can really help relieve some stress off your shoulders. Though, there shouldn’t even be stress to begin with, not when…” The human quickly shut up and shook his head again. The newt was about to comment on it before he spoke again. “Never mind. None of that matters when you’re surrounded by this seemingly perfect utopia filled to the brim with frogs and toads. Oh, and standing in the presence of a self-proclaimed newt king.” A nervous chuckle escaped the smaller being while Andrias scoffed. “You only got one of those things right. The last thing I am is self-proclaimed. Believe what you will with this title of mine, as it’s completely true.”

The human chuckled again and rubbed behind the back of his neck. “Right… Well then, your majesty, do you fall in the same boat I do? With none of this being normal, I mean.” The king raised an eyebrow at him. Really, he hadn’t figured that out yet? “Of course I do! In fact, I had so many… great plans about to be ordered, but instead of waking up in my bedroom I instead woke up to a beautiful blue sky laying upon lively grass. I had to travel for frog knows how long before I finally ended up here. These aren’t even my proper clothes! So to make a long story short, yes, something about this predicament is far from normal. It’s actually the most abnormal thing that could happen to me!” Andrias’s voice cried out, the human only blinking and nodding at the newt’s tale.

“That makes two of us, then. See, I’d done just as you had, fallen asleep to ready myself for what the next day would bring me, and I awakened to an all new land. Only for me, I didn't have to take any trips or anything. I was only a few feet away from the city’s border before taking a step inside it and venturing around. I started asking around, questioning both the humans and amphibians about this new world, all of them telling me the same thing. Practically every single one of them was the same. You’ve been the only different one. For that, I’m thankful.”

Again, the human was bringing up good points. Sure he’d only talked to one florist, but that was enough when it came to getting a general understanding of what was all transpiring. Andrias slowly nodded. “I suppose I should be thankful for your presence as well. You humans sure do come in handy in tricky times in need, for better or for worse.” The king snickered to himself while the man looked puzzled. “Oh well, we can save explanations for later.”

A returned nod, a much firmer one. “Yes, I suppose we can.” One of his hands went to raise and hold at his chin, holding it there before he proceeded to speak again. “Well, since we’ve made it clear that we’re stuck in the same, unfortunate situation, I find it fitting that we work together in finding a solution to this issue. Four eyes are better than two, as they say.” Andrias looked at him in disbelief. Easy for a four-eyes to say. The king scoffed. “Working together, you mean as partners?” While the newt was mostly against working with a human, especially when he was so close to fulfilling his plans of world domination for a land infested with them, maybe this one would prove himself useful. He seemed to have a few working brain cells in that weak skull of his, and once they found a way out, he’d go back to the way things were. Earth would finally be his to control!

“Yes, partners.” The voice piped up, reminding the newt that he was still there. “I’m afraid with so little leads on my end, I don’t think I’d be able to do this all on my own. At least there’s a little more hope this way.” For the most part, the human seemed rather honest with this proposal. Andrias didn’t like it, but he knew deep down that the smaller being was right. It was possible that there was no other way than this. “We could make this a little bit of a deal, if you’d like.” Just then, the man’s hand extended out. “We both work together in order to achieve the same goal. How does that sound, your kingliness?” Wow, Andrias might have just killed him personally for that remark, but he had no means in doing so. Suppressing a groan, the king’s bigger hand gently gripped at the human’s. “Sounds like a fair deal to me. I’m sold.” And their hands shook. There was no going back now.

The human’s expression lit up as the two’s hands parted ways, a genuine smile showing. “Now that we have that established, we should get to know ourselves better by learning our names. As much as it might please you, I don’t think referring to you as ‘your majesty’ this entire time would be ideal.” The newt simply shrugged. “I would argue that I have no issue with that, though I admit it may get a little awkward. Fine then! My name is King Andrias, noble ruler of the land known as Amphibia!” There was a wide grin on his face as he proclaimed his name, then going to squint at the human. “And may I ask for your name as well?”

“Ah, yes of course. My name is Maruki, Takuto Maruki. I… I’m a part time counselor at a far-off academy.”

“A counselor? How enlightening… Well Takuto, I-”

“Oh, would you mind calling me Maruki for now? I’m not so sure I’m entirely used to people referring to me by my first name, especially since we’ve only just met.”

“Uh, sure then. Well, Maruki, since we’ve gotten the formalities out of the way, do you think it’d be wise for us to start exploring a little bit more? See if there are any others just as us? Some answers as well! I’d kill to see legitimate answers for our problems!” Quite literally at that, too. Not that Maruki needed to be aware of that, anyways. The king then heard the counselor hum in agreement. “What else is there to do? These things won’t just pop out of nowhere for us, so if we have to be the ones to unearth them, so be it.” He turned away from Andrias and proceeded walking down the sidewalk, the newt going ahead and following behind him. “All I’m wishing for is that we finally get to solving this mystery. As tranquil as it may be, this isn’t home, and I’d like to return to that home at all costs.”

Yes, home. Andrias agreed with the need of returning home as soon as possible. Without him, the invasion of Earth wouldn’t happen, and all he’s been building up for so long would end up being a complete waste. The king wouldn’t allow this mission to fail, meaning that the task he now had better had been done quickly. Maruki may have been not the worst company, but that wouldn’t change the fact that things were already in motion. Home was no longer home, only a wasteland that needed Earth’s essence to be drained from it in order to truly prosper. Even then, despite it all, Amphibia would eventually return to its former glory, just as it had been in ancient time’s past.

The small, newly grouped-up partners continued walking down the street, and only when the moment silenced was when the king was able to speak.

“Home… How much I miss it.”