Travelling to new lands

Episode 37: Em at the Gates

Birds squawking could be heard in the sky, Sprig held a map and traced his finger to where Newtopia is "Doo, doo, doo. Newtopia! Ugh. I can't believe it! It's been a long journey, but we're finally almost there." he sighed, glad that they finally arrived. He looked at Pika, who held their phone and looked distant and worried."Pika?" Sprig called out to Pika, which snapped them back to reality."Hm?" Pika hummed, "Uh, thought you'd be more excited." Sprig told Pika."I am excited, but..." Pika stated, they then pulled the Mal closer to the centre "We travelled from here and we are almost there, yet no sign of Em and no new signs of Cy either" Pika explained as they traced their finger from Wartwood all the way to Newtopia "Maybe that's a good thing. Your last friend was kind of... totally evil." Sprig said as he pointed to Cy on Pika's phone, they slapped Sprig's hand away "Oi, me and Cy might just be going through a rough moment, but that doesn't mean I don't worry for his safety. I mean, dude attempted to kill himself the last time we saw him. And he said 'Yeet!', anyways, Em is totally different. She is harmless, " Pika told Sprig

Flashback:

Em was sitting on the floor next to Pika while drawing and watching a streamer cooking during lunchtime. "Holy shit did he just bite that onion like an apple?!?" Em exclaimed as she looked at the stream again as she sat next to Pika when a ball hit her in the face, "SHIT-!" She exclaimed
There was also the time when Em was walking with Pika, "So ghost was like 'show my face?' and the soap was like 'yes sir' and then ghost was lik-" "POLE-" Pika yelped as they noticed a pole and Em walked into a pole

Back to the Fwagon present day:

"Em is like super creative, but often loud, which I mostly have no problem with. She's also clumsy. like, maybe one of the clumsiest people I know." Pika told Sprig."Wow, that must be horrible." Sprig sympathised, he then tried to drink some water but dropped the cup, "back home, I was there to help her when she got hurt, and may have been the reason she got hurt once- But here she is alone in certain areas, and instead of getting hit with a ball or walking into a pole..." Pika explained but trailed off as their thoughts stormed, making up awful scenarios."She could get mauled by an elephant scarab. Or crushed to death by a heron. Or worse, flayed alive by a..." Sprig began listing ways someone can get killed, but Pika shuts him up by holding his arm with a death grip,"not helping." They sighed, then Polly opened the hatch on the top."Guys! Come... It's... I... Not gonna believe... Ah! Just get out here!" she told Pika and Sprig excitedly, Pika and Sprig got out of the Fwagon and onto the roof, when they looked ahead they gasped, Pika hopped off and ran to get a better view of the beauty of Newtopia "woah" all four of them uttered "There she is, gang... Newtopia. If there's a way to get you home, it's in that city." Hop-pop points out, "let's get down there then!" Pika said, sounding excited. They all jumped in excitement

They got down there:

As they walked up to the gate, Pika got uncomfortable. "blegh... now my feet are soaked, " they grumbled as they pulled up the ends of their pants."Now, this is the life." Polly sighed as she floated across the water. She then hit a hole in the ground."Huh? Hey, what do you think made these holes?" she asked as she looked in the hole, Hop-pop looked in the hole as well "Mmm...Better not to ask. Come on!" He told Polly as he dragged her away."I feel like this is going to come back later." She quickly said as she was being dragged away, they reached the gate."Finally here, Oi! Open up, you little shi-!" Pika yelled, a small window opened up, and a newt stuck its head out."You can't come in here. Newtopia's closed." the newt told them."Seriously?" The Plantars groaned "For lunch, forever or until further notice?" Pika asked, "The city is closed, closed to all outsiders." The newt answered."What the hey hey? Why? Till when?" Sprig asked."Until the barbari-ants are gone, of course. Good luck out there" the newt told them, he then tried to close the window but got fell out and was hanging by the handle of the window, Polly watched laughing, and the newt got back in and grabbed a hook "I'm okay!" he called out before closing the window, Pika looked at the Plantars."Do any of you guys know what the fuuuuuuuudge that dude was blabbing about?" Pika asked the Plantars."Beats me. We don't got 'em in the valley." Hop-pop answered, "Psh, they close the whole city because of a few little ants?" Sprig laughed, but then a giant ant attacked."Ah! Big ant! Really big ant!" Sprig yelped, he then held the pincers of the Barbari-ant from closing, Hop-pop and Polly boosted Pika up into the sky and Pika swung their bat down onto the ant, disorientating it, Polly attached to one of it's legs and bit it numerous times, the big ant tried to shake Polly off, Sprig and Pika then stood on opposite sides of Hop-pop "One... two... three." They counted before throwing Hop-pop towards the ant, he inflated his throat and hit the ant, knocking it over, the ant then retreated, Hop-pop was getting the water out of his ears as Pika walked up soaked head to toe "Yes! Kiss my butt you oversized bug!" Pika yelled. They then shook their head, which messed up their hair a bit, and then the ground rumbled."Uh, you guys feel that?" Sprig asked feeling the rumble, then more Barbari-ants dug out and surrounded the Plantars and Pika "Oh shoot-" Pika yelped then a bag was thrown into the water and some black stuff appeared "What the?" Pika muttered, confused as more bags with black stuff were thrown around them. Then, a flame arrow was shot into the goop, and it caught fire. The barbari-ants were scared and retreated. "Woah.... Huh?" They all uttered as a hooded figure stood on the top of the wall looking mysterious and shot their crossbow."Hop-Pop, can I get a crossbow for my birthday? Please, please, please!" Polly begged, the arrow the figure shot plunged into the wheel of the Fwagon."Eh, we'll talk." Hop-pop answered unsurely, the figure rod down the rope, the Plantars gasped."That's one cool newt." Hop-pop muttered, the rope then broke, and the figure fell right into the water."Been there." Sprig muttered as he knew how that would've felt, "Didn't really stick the landing." Polly points out, Pika walked right between the Plantars and cautiously looked at the figure, sceptical if their already bad eyes are fooling them."Is that..." Pika muttered, the hooded figure coughed as they lifted their head out of the water."Note to self, get better rope... that shit hurt like a truck... god damn, " the hooded figure got up while muttering to themself. They then turned and looked over to Pika and the Planters and took off their hood...