Chapter 26: The Battle of Tadpole Pond!

Uodeela and her apprentices prepare to face the Toad Army for the fate of Tadpole Pond.

Tropes That Appear In This Chapter:

All for Nothing: The Voice convinces Sasha that if she gives up on the battle, her fight with Anne and her mental suffering will be this.
An Arm and a Leg: Amara ends up getting her tail bitten off by the Red Heron, leaving it a stump needing to be bandaged.
Bittersweet Ending: Doubles as Downer Ending: although the apprentices were able to drive out the toad army from Tadpole Pond, they lost their master to her cursed form and witnessed so many other lives be lost.
Brought Down to Normal: During the battle, Grime manages to steal Uodeela's staff and destroy her magic gem, making her vulnerable to the toad soldiers' attacks.
Broken Tears: After seeing the aftermath of the battle, Luz collapses to her knees crying. Lilly hugs her and starts shedding tears too, and Gustav and Amara soon join them.
Call-Forward: Grime is informed Luz's eyes glowing purple is not a human thing.
Grime: So it's not a human thing then?
Death by Adaptation: The Red Heron tears both of Fens's legs off before devouring her.
Disney Death: Fens stabs Lilly three times, killing her but Amara and Gustav revive her with an Elixer of Life.
Downer Ending: Uodeela gets stuck as the Red Heron and flies off to who knows where with her apprentices unable to stop her; on the villain's side, Bog (pissed that the battle was a failure and that Fens was lost) leads the remains of the army into abandoning Grime and Sasha. And to top it all off, the battle and especially Uodeela's fate pretty much cleaved Luz and Sasha's friendship in half.
Eye Scream: Gustav gets the upper hand on Bog by throwing a bomb potion in his face, injuring his right eye.
Flashback: The chapter begins 3 years ago when Lilly's mother was executed at Toad Tower.
Forgiveness: In a rather bold last ditch effort to get Sasha to abandon the toads, Luz decides to forgive her for setting her up at the dance. Sasha refusing to accept it and Uodeela getting injured negates it on both sides.
Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Sasha tells Luz that she needs to help Grime to finish the invasion, who acts more like a father than her real, neglectful one. While Luz is sympathetic with Sasha about her home problems, she tells her that doesn't give her the right to hurt others.
Green Thumb: Like Uodeela, Luz utilizes vine summoning.
History Repeats: For the second time, Sasha's actions against innocent bystanders and the Amphibian who took in one of her friends costs her said friend.
In Spite of a Nail: Luz learns how to use plant magic.
Internal Reveal:
- Uodeela tells Luz everything about the Calamity Box and her powers.
- Sasha witnesses Luz using her Calamity powers.
Laser-Guided Karma: The toad army really suffers for their actions in this chapter.
- Bog takes an bomb potion to the eye, courtesy of Gustav for always talking down to him.
- Everyone who gangs up on the weakened Uodeela suffers Luz's Calamity-powered wrath; the soldiers are set on fire, Grime is slammed into the ground with a vine and knocked out, and Sasha gets flung out of town via a tornado.
- Fens is cursed by Amara for killing Lilly and she's slowly eaten by Uodeela as the Red Heron.
Killed Off for Real: Lilly's mother in the flashback, Fens and a few toads by the Red Heron and all the citizens who lose their lives in the battle.
Missing Mom: It turns out Lilly lost her mother three years ago.
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Uodeela is on the receiving end of one after her gem is destroyed, then the toads, as well as Grime and Sasha, take one at the Calamity-powered Luz's hands.
The Reveal:
- Lilly's mother was killed for protesting against the toads' tax collections.
- Amara's army friend is a captain in the Newtopian army, and it's been years since they've seen each other.
Utility Weapon: Sasha uses a whip during her fight against Uodeela to try and take her staff.
We Used to Be Friends: As a result of Sasha's actions, Luz is done being her friend.
Wham Episode: Uodeela's gem is destroyed, she gets stuck as the Red Heron, eats Fens and flies off after driving the toads out of Tadpole Pond. Sasha learns Luz has magic powers, Luz ends their friendship, and the toads abandon Sasha and Grime due to the failure of their invasion.