Work Text:
💧
“What’s that you’re building?”
A boy a couple of breaths taller than Lukas is standing beside him, gazing up at the fountain he’s working on.
“Oh, this?” Lukas shrugs, dusting off his hands. “I’m just practicing a little for the next Endercon. I’m trying to get these dispensers to release water at the same time, but something’s not right with my redstone, I think..”
The boy steps closer to the fountain. “Hmm. Mind if I take a look?”
“By all means. I’m no redstone expert, anyway.” He puts his hands on his hips. “Name’s Lukas, by the way.”
“Aiden,” the boy replies. He hops up onto the rim of the fountain, nodding as if impressed. “You been travelling, Lukas? This is an impressive amount of quartz.”
Lukas laughs. “Ha, no. I’ve got a friend who does, though - she helped me get all the stuff I needed this year.”
“Hmm. Sounds like she’s a good friend.” Aiden peers into the crude circuitry, adjusting his angle. “Ah. I see where you went wrong.” He pokes his head over the top of the fountain. “D’you have some extra redstone lyin’ around? I can help you fix it, if you’d like.”
“Would you?” Lukas pats down the back of his head. “That’s awfully nice of you, Aiden. I appreciate it.”
“No worries.” Aiden grins. “Besides, apart from the amateur engineering - no offense - this thing actually looks pretty cool.”
Lukas digs through his pockets and procures the redstone. “Thanks,” he laughs. “I come up with loads of ideas for builds, but - man, the ones involving redstone? I don’t have the skills to rig them up correctly. Or a team to build them with, actually,” he admits.
“Well..” Aiden takes the redstone from him. “If you’re looking for a teammate, I’d be happy to tag along. Always wanted a go at Endercon’s building competition. I’m not that great at designs, but redstone’s my strong suit.”
“Really?” Lukas laughs again, bringing a hand to his head. “Well - Aiden, I suppose we’re a team now, aren’t we?”
“That we are!” He crouches again, clicking his tongue as he fixes Lukas’ progress so far.
In a a couple minutes’ time, the fountain is working perfectly, beautifully - exactly as Lukas envisioned it.
💧
Lukas meets up with Petra the next day and hands her over a stack of iron ingots. “Thanks again for fixing me all that quartz,” he tells her, smiling easily.
Petra counts the ingots. “No problem,” she says back, not looking at him. “I’m just glad you’re finally taking a shot at this building comp. You’ve been raving on about it for months.”
Lukas shrugs. He’s known Petra for a good two years by this point, ever since he stumbled on her path one late night out. Back then she hadn’t been the fearless adventurer everyone knows her for now, and she’d been struggling to fend off a nasty horde of zombies whilst nursing an injured leg. Lukas had built the pair a decent shelter to hold them off, and they’d spent the night together, Lukas offering up his apples and cooked meats, and waited it out til morning. Since then, Petra’s been helping him out with sourcing build materials, and Lukas helps her out with the odd favour or two, whenever she prowls out of whatever cave she’s leapt into and emerges several ores richer.
“Oh, speaking of.” Petra tucks the iron into her pockets. “Have you found a team yet? Seeing as, y’know. The competition’s in three weeks.”
“Actually,” Lukas says with a laugh, “I have!” He recalls the previous day’s events. “Some guy was walking by as I was building yesterday. He helped me with my redstone.”
“Hm. What’s his name?”
“Aiden.” Lukas folds his arms. “He’s decent, I think. His redstone’s far better than mine, anyhow. He offered to team up with me.”
“Oh, phew.” Petra smirks. “For a sec I thought you’d still need me as your backup option.”
Lukas snorts. “Offer’s still open, y’know.”
“Nah.” Petra shakes her head. “You know building’s not my thing, Lukas. But good luck anyway.” She turns, lazily waving a hand. “I’ll see you around, huh?”
Lukas waves back at her. “I’ll see you,” he promises, smiling just a little.
💧
“I think it would look cooler if you added redstone lamps,” Aiden muses, as the pair of them pore over Lukas’ sketches. “Oh - maybe a couple of note blocks, too - I could make it so that they play a little tune when the water comes out.”
“Hmm.” Lukas adds a note to his newest sketch. “That does sound cool. It could add to our design score..”
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot,” Aiden says, scratching his head. “What are we gonna call ourselves, by the way?”
Lukas puts down his quill. “Huh?”
“Our team name?” Aiden gestures at himself, then at Lukas. He stifles a laugh. “What, you never thought about it?”
“No, I have,” Lukas shoots back, somewhat defensively. “Um..” He taps his fingers on his desk. “Well.. I was thinking, maybe the Ocelots..? They’re my favourite animal,” he adds hurriedly, after seeing the look on Aiden’s face. “Tough cats. But also really very cute.”
Aiden laughs. “Is this some sort of projection thing, or..”
Lukas blushes. “No! I’m just saying..” He shrugs. “It’s just ‘cause, y’know - people tend to forget how dangerous animals can be, wild or not. How easily they can hurt you, even the most harmless-looking ones.”
Aiden laughs again. “Oh, I see. So you’re going for a, what, ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ kinda vibe?”
Lukas nods. “Exactly that,” he says. “Plus..” He lifts up his leather jacket. “I’m already wearing an ocelot patch. Makes things easier.”
“Hmm. You got anymore of those patches handy?” Aiden gestures at his own denim jacket. “I could do with a little bit of branding, too.”
“Oh! Yeah, sure, they’re just in that chest over there.” Lukas points at the one beside his bookcase. “I made a few extras,” he explains, as Aiden heads over, “in case, well. In case I found my own team.”
“Aww.” Aiden takes one out with a smile. “Isn’t that cute.”
“Yeah,” Lukas mumbles back. “Yeah, I guess.”
By the end of the day they’ve come up with a finalized design. Lukas waves Aiden goodbye as he leaves, the newly sewn-on ocelot face on his jacket leering back at him.
💧
“Sorry, dears,” the competition announcer lilts, “but you’ve got to have at least three members on your team to be eligible to compete!”
Lukas and Aiden look at each other. They’re second to the front of the line, and there are only two of them, too.
“What? That’s crazy.” The girl in front tosses back her hair. “Building is about quality , not quantity .”
“Yeah!” agrees the bearded man beside her. “Not letting us build just ‘cause there’s two of is inane.”
“Sorry, but rules are rules,” the announcer sighs. It sounds like she has to say this once every minute.
“Lukas,” Aiden hisses. “I thought you read the terms and conditions?”
“I did!” Lukas protests. “I - I did.” Did they change the rules this year? Oh, it doesn’t matter now. Unless he and Aiden can get at least another person on board then they are screwed.
But so are the two in front of them..
“Wait.” Lukas brushes past Aiden and goes up to the check-in booth. “Hi, sorry,” he laughs. The two people in front look to him, eyebrows raised. “You can join my team, if you’d like.” He points a thumb at himself and Aiden. “We’ve only got two as well, so..”
“Really?” The bearded man smiles, glancing at the announcer. “Can we do that? Sign up as one team?”
“Well, seeing as there’s four of you.” The announcer shrugs. “I don’t see why not.”
The girl beams. “Hey, thanks,” she says to Lukas. “I’m Maya. That’s Gill.” She nods at her friend. “And you?”
“Lukas,” he tells her. “And this is Aiden.” Lukas looks towards him, smile fading as he realizes that Aiden is scowling.
The announcer clears her throat. “And your team name is..?”
Maya and Gill look at each other. “We’re, uh..”
“The Ocelots,” Lukas declares. “We’re the Ocelots.”
“‘Ocelots’.. great! You four are in Booth Six.”
Lukas leads them over, opening the chest in the booth. He puts in all the building materials he’d brought along, going over the design in his head again.
“Thanks for letting us join your team, Lukas,” Maya says, hands in her pockets. “We, uh-” She laughs, casting a glance at Gill. “Me ‘n Gill were underprepared, anyway. We signed up on a whim.”
Aiden crosses his arms. “What were you planning to build, then?” he asks them, flat.
“Like I said.” Maya shrugs. “We signed up on a whim .”
Lukas looks over to the three of them right as Aiden rolls his eyes. “Well, here’s the deal,” he snarks. “Lukas and I are building a fountain. Chiseled quartz.” He gestures at the chest. “I’ll take care of the redstone, you two help our mighty leader here.” He locks eyes with Lukas.
“Uh, yeah.” Lukas cringes. “We don’t have much time to run you guys down on every little detail, so..”
“Nah, don’t worry about it.” Gill hops over to the chest. “Uh - just tell us where to put everything and we’ll try not to mess it up.”
“Yeah!” Maya walks over to the chest as well. “Oh, and, if we’re gonna be a team from now on - I’ll have you know, I’m good at redstone, too.”
“I prefer doing the actual building,” Gill adds. “And gathering materials.”
“Uh-huh,” says Aiden.
Lukas beams. “Well, that’s good to know,” he replies genuinely. “I look forward to working with you.” He eyes Aiden, whose expression is dour, and corrects himself: “ We look forward to working with you.”
After that, Lukas pulls Aiden aside. “What’s with the look?” he asks, lips pursed. “You’re clearly not happy about something.”
Aiden rolls his eyes again. “ Seriously , Lukas? Look at them.”
“What’s wrong with them?”
“Are you sure we can rely on them to help?” Aiden folds his arms. “Frankly, they’re more of a nuisance if I’ve ever seen one.”
Lukas straightens up. “We needed more teammates,” he states. “You heard the woman back there, didn’t you? Besides - you’ve just met them, how would you know what they’re capable of?”
Aiden wrinkles his nose. “Fine,” he scoffs, dropping his arms. “But if they fuck it up somehow, it’s your fault.”
He stalks away before Lukas can reply. Lukas stares after him. What’s gotten into him?
The announcer then calls for everyone’s attention. Lukas shakes his head. I’ll talk to him later , he decides, again recalling his design. He’s pulled it into his mind from memory dozens of times. He can do this. They all can.
“Building starts now!” the announcer shouts. “Good luck, everyone!”
Lukas takes charge. He gives Gill and Maya the stuff they need and gives them each in-depth instructions, checking on Aiden, who is muttering to himself as he stares at the dispenser in his hand. Lukas gulps, and multiple times as he reaches for more quartz his fingers fumble and he almost drops it. Focus. We gotta build this, quick. He busies himself with the work, busying his hands. Watching carefully as Aiden wires everything up, still looking sour. What’s he got to be sour about? Lukas had seen an opportunity for all four to enter the competition and had taken it. And it’s not like either Gill or Maya have been in Aiden’s way - in fact, they take quickly to Lukas’ instructions and are doing a great job, building alongside him. And soon after that, with a couple minutes to spare, they are done building their fountain entirely, now standing back to admire it as the note blocks play a whimsical tune.
“Hey, this looks great!” Gill grins up at it, hands on his hips.
“It does, doesn’t it?” Lukas smiles too, dusting off his hands. “Good work, guys. Thanks for the help.”
“No problem,” Maya says, joining him and Gill. “Say, you’re pretty good at the design aspect of this, aren’t you, Lukas?” She nods with a pleased smile. “I’m looking forward to designing whatever we build next year.”
Lukas blinks. “Next year?”
“Yeah, next year! What, are you saying you wanna call it quits after this?”
“Depends,” Aiden cuts in, prowling over. “Depends if we win.”
“Oh, come on.” Maya throws her head back and laughs. “There’s no way we’re not winning! Look at how cool this is.”
Neither Aiden nor Lukas say anything after that, though they’re both thinking the same thing.
They are escorted out of their booth once the timer goes off. The panel of judges walk around with clipboards, scribbling quick. Lukas notices them lingering at their build - longer than they have at any other - and then he notices how he’s wringing his hands, and lets go in haste.
“Thank you for your patience, everyone!” the announcer calls over the murmurs of other teams. “Judging has now concluded. Let’s see what our judges have to say, shall we?” She takes the clipboard given to her by presumably the head judge, and clears her throat. “Now, for the moment of truth - on behalf of all of us at Endercon, we are proud to announce that the winner of this year’s building competition is-”
She flips the page.
“Congratulations, Ocelots in Booth Six! With a stunning total score of-”
Lukas doesn’t hear the rest.
💧
Maya and Gill are still squealing by the time the four of them head into Endercon. Lukas has been in a daze since the announcement, still turning the news over in his head.
At least Aiden seems to have lightened up. “Hey, we did it!” He even goes over to Lukas and shakes him at some point. “You hear me, Lukas? We did it! We won!” He laughs, and laughs, and laughs, as if he’d never had doubts in the first place. “Hey, Maya, Gill - I know I wasn’t the friendliest earlier, but you two are pretty great. You’re welcome to the team for as long as you’d like.”
Lukas snaps out of it. “Yeah, definitely,” he agrees with a smile. “You two helped a lot. I’m grateful for that.”
Gill and Maya both grin. “Well,” laughs Maya, “I guess we’ll be seeing each other around more often, then.”
“That we will,” Aiden says back. “That we will.”
💧
The four of them hang out plenty after that. They practice building together, draft several new ideas for what they could build next Endercon. None of them live particularly far from Lukas’ modest ranch, but it’s Aiden that suggests, almost a year after their first Endercon, that the four of them should live together. So the week after that, they spend time expanding Lukas’ ranch - and they had agreed on Lukas’ specifically, seeing as he lives closest to town. He’d wanted to protest at first, but upon seeing the excitement on his friends’ faces, he agrees, and begins thinking of ways to upgrade his house.
At some point Gill teaches the other three how to play spleef, and so they make their own mini-arena beside Lukas’ house to have it out on free days. It’s a great way to keep fit, and practice combat, in case of hostile mobs. And they all have a great time, too, playing against each other alone or in teams of two. Aiden’s usually the one who pairs with Lukas, grinning, and saying every time: “I’ve got your back.” And Lukas has his, too. Not just in this small, fun game. Everywhere else, too. After all he’s done already.
That’s not to say he won’t be there for Gill or Maya. Gill’s tough, and a decent fighter - Lukas has him to thank for more than one late night out, caught in between zombies and skeletons and spiders whilst on their way home. But he’s easy-going, and surprisingly sweet. Maya is teasing, but she knows her own worth: something Lukas wishes he could know of himself, too. She gives the impression that she doesn’t really take anything to heart, but she definitely does, and it shows in the hours they spend together, all the time that they share.
And then - Aiden again. He’s very headstrong, that much is clear. Passionate, in an obsessive way. It helps that his determination to win motivates him to study further into redstone, into thinking of ways to bring something fresh to their builds. He’s already extremely good with redstone - even better than Maya - but he still picks up a book to read sometimes, to learn. Other than that, he’s pushy, sometimes. Straight-up sarcastic in others. He’s probably soft on the inside , Lukas reasons. Maybe that’s why. Maybe he’s someone who can’t handle visible affection or whatever. It doesn’t matter to Lukas, anyhow. Aiden still treats him as an equal, at least.
One thing is clear. Aiden, Gill and Maya are more than just teammates to Lukas. They’re his friends - his closest friends - his only friends. He had been somewhat of a recluse before, withdrawn, albeit friendly to everyone he’d known. That was before that day Aiden approached him building alone, out nowhere in particular. Lukas has never been that close to anyone - not really - but this makes for a nice change. He appreciates their company. He appreciates that they stick around.
💧
It’s one day outside his - the Ocelots’ - house that Lukas realizes just how much he can trust them. The four of them lie amongst the tall grass and flowers and trees and watch the sunset together, hovering low in the sky. There is a slight wind bristling past, but it is light enough for it not to matter. For it to still be warm.
“Y’know,” Gill calls at some point, hands behind his head, “building’s fun and all, but ain’t it nice to just take in the view for once, hm?”
Maya’s laugh pierces through the air. “I know! It’s beautiful!”
Aiden makes a sound of annoyance. “It would be even better if we weren’t on flat ground,” he mutters.
“Oh, cheer up, you!” Maya hurls a clump of grass towards him. “You’re always complaining about everything. Be grateful you have a sun to look at.”
Aiden rolls his eyes, but his lips are twitching, and it’s not long before he’s smiling. “I guess this is decent,” he muses.
Maya picks a few flowers, twirling them round in her hands. “Hey,” she says suddenly. “Who wants a flower crown?”
“A flower crown? Seriously?” Aiden scoffs and rolls his eyes again. “Those are for children, Maya.”
“Your loss,” Gill snorts. “Everyone looks pretty with flowers in their hair. Pretty sure that applies to you, too.”
Aiden straightens. “You wanna bet?”
“Okay.” Maya sticks out her tongue and works to twine the flowers with longer strands of grass. “One for me, one for Gill, and one for Aiden.” She looks up after a brief pause. “You want one, Lukas?”
Lukas smiles a little, and shakes his head. “I’m alright,” he tells her. “Thanks, though.”
“Oh, come on, Lukas,” Aiden laughs. “We’re a team. We should all get one. Yes, yes, yes, even me,” he huffs as Gill grins at him.
“Yeah, Lukas,” Maya agrees. “You sure you don’t want one? Don’t be shy.”
Lukas’ smile grows forced. “Really,” he replies, trying to shrug it off. “I’m alright. They’ll look better on you guys, anyway.”
Maya purses her lips. “You’d look nice with a crown, too,” she sighs. “You out of all of us would look best in one - you’re our leader , after all.”
Lukas doesn’t say anything. He turns his eyes away, a faint heat creeping into his face. It’s not that he has anything against the idea - and it’s not that he thinks they pertain to children, or any one group in general - but somehow, somehow , the idea of wearing flowers in his hair feels like an excessively feminine action. He knows it’s not - he knows , goddamn it, they’re just flowers - but merely being asked this question sends his mind back to when he used to have much longer hair, when those older than him used to weave daisies into it and dress him up as someone he’s not, despite his protests then, despite his shouts and cries. And despite everything now, an old habit finds him and he clutches his hands to his chest, right over where the scars are, where they’ll always stay. Not like they’ve got anywhere else to go.
“Lukas? Are you okay?”
Lukas looks back to the three of them. They’re all staring at him, and he realizes he’s still got his hands on his torso. He drops them, quickly, and feigns a smile again.
“I’m alright, Maya,” he says back to her. “Just - don’t worry about making me one. Aren’t your hands still sore from mining the other day?”
Maya shrugs. “Kinda. Doesn’t matter that much though.”
The four of them settle into silence again. Lukas looks onwards towards the setting sun, dipping beyond the horizon, and lets out a sigh. How beautiful this world can be , he thinks, propping up his knees. He glances around at his friends, breathing out carefully, hoping they’ve moved on from the flower crown conversation.
Except Aiden is still staring at him, eyes squinted. He barely seems to notice as Maya plops a crown of poppies atop his head.
“Why were you doing that?” he asks Lukas, gesturing.
Lukas frowns. “Doing what?”
“Y’know.” Aiden gives a slight roll of his eyes. “Clutching your chest like a damsel in distress.”
Lukas looks away.
“Yeah, that was kinda..” Gill trails off, and shrugs. “Well, it’s not our business if you don’t want to say, Lukas.”
“Yeah,” Aiden mutters. “Never mind.”
Should he tell them? Lukas’ fingers clench over a patch of growing grass. What would be the harm in telling them? It’s not like they’ll care. Except, of course, maybe they would care, and maybe it would make them see him differently. As someone else.
They’re all looking at him expectantly. Lukas looks back to each of them and realizes, quite suddenly, that he wants them to know. It’s not so much a secret as it is a part of himself. So he decides to tell them. And he does.
“I’m trans,” he says, the words so soft that he’s scared he has to repeat himself. But the wind is quiet on his behalf, and judging by the looks on the others’ faces, they’ve heard him loud and clear.
“Uh,” Gill splutters, “trans as in, you’re a man, or a woman-?”
“What?” Lukas blurts, barking out a laugh. “ What? No, I’m - trans, as in I’m not a woman, Gill.”
“Ohh.” Gill winks and gives him a thumbs-up. “Cool, cool. Just had to check I wasn’t misunderstanding.”
Maya begins to laugh. “I hate to admit it, but I was wondering the same thing,” she tells Lukas. “I-I don’t mean this in the wrong way, okay? But if you hadn’t said I wouldn’t have known.”
“Oh,” Lukas breathes. “Oh, good. Good to know.”
Aiden is uncharacteristically quiet. But he’s not looking at Lukas anymore, eyes turned instead back to the sun.
“Is that..” Lukas cringes at what he’s about to ask, but he has to anyway - just in case. “Is that cool with you guys?”
“Don’t be stupid!” Aiden exclaims, turning his head slightly back. “Of course that’s cool with us. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I second that,” Maya pipes up.
“I third that, ‘cause it’s who you are,” Gill agrees. “Far as I’m concerned, you’re still Lukas, fearless leader of the Ocelots.”
Lukas snorts a little. “‘Fearless’ might be a stretch.”
“Hey, don’t worry ‘bout it, okay?” Maya beams at him. “You’ll always be our friend, Lukas. No matter what.”
Gill and Aiden nod at her words. Lukas smiles, bringing a hand to his hair.
“Thanks,” he murmurs. “I appreciate it.”
“Anyway, while we’re at this whole coming out thing, I might as well mention I’m pan,” Maya goes on, shrugging as she fixes a crown of daisies to her head.
“I already knew that,” Gill interjects, “and Maya knows this too, but I’m bi.”
Aiden nods a bit. “Me too,” he whispers.
Lukas smooths his hand over the back of his head. “Oh, well, uh..” He might as well tell them his sexuality too. They clearly don’t care about it. Not in a weird, uncomfortable way. “I’m ace,” he finishes firmly. “Panromantic.” He searches the others’ faces for any sign of confusion. None. Relief pours into him again.
“Alright! The gang’s all queer.” Maya grins at Lukas, and then at Gill and Aiden. “Y’all got anything else personal to share?”
They talk like this, gently, laughing into the night.
💧
The Ocelots keep building. Their build designs become more sophisticated, more complex - Lukas makes hell sure of that. And they continue to win. Year after year after year after their first competition as the Ocelots. No one else even comes close.
“See?” Petra says, handing Lukas the clay he’d requested. “Told you you’d be great at this. You just gotta believe in yourself a bit more, Lukas.”
Lukas laughs a little. “I try to,” he replies. “It’s quite thrilling, actually. I’m surprised people like my work this much.”
“Ha! You kidding? You’ve got brains, man. And you’re a great builder. People like ideas that are smart and eye-catching.”
Lukas smiles, shy at her words. “Thanks, Petra. That means a lot. And I couldn’t have made a lot of those things if you hadn’t gone out to get the resources for me.”
Petra shrugs. “Consider it reciprocity. Not like I’m helping you for free, anyway. Now pay up.”
By the time it’s their fourth year entering Endercon’s building competition, Lukas is already familiar with most of the faces here. Some are new; some are regular competitors, but there’s never always the same people, never teams that come back every single year with the same members. But , he thinks with some smugness, maybe they just don’t want to lose again. It’s hard to think that the Ocelots would lose at this point. But the chances are low, not zero. So Lukas prepares himself to be surprised every year.
This year, there’s a completely new team. The Ocelots have already registered and checked in, and are sorting through their building materials. When Lukas glances up from rifling through their chest, he sees them at the check-in booth: a complete new set of faces, none he’s ever seen before. The tallest of them is clad in a green coat and scarf, arms folded. The one to the right wears goggles over a green beanie, yawning as she pats down her scarlet tunic. The one at the front, speaking to the competition announcer, is the shortest of the three - dressed in a cream shirt and a scruffy-looking jacket with several coloured patches over the fabric. From even here he can tell their hair is soft. Something about the way they carry themself makes Lukas think they’re the leader.
Aiden notices Lukas staring, and follows where his eyes are pointed. “Woah,” he says, cocking an eyebrow. “Never seen them here before.” Then, with a snort, “What is the one at the front wearing? What an absolute eyesore.”
Maya catches sight of them too and laughs. “Wow. I mean, I’ve seen my fair share of scraggly people, but, ha, they might be the most scraggly..”
“They don’t really look like builders to me,” Gill comments.
Lukas frowns. “Let’s not jump to conclusions, guys,” he says, standing up. “Don’t be rude.”
“Just an observation,” Gill says with a cringe. “But you’re right. I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, me too,” Maya apologizes. “I guess that jacket’s just for the aesthetics?”
Aiden, surprisingly, is the one who scoffs. “‘Don’t be rude’ - come on , Lukas, how ‘bout you stop being so nice about everything?”
“I-” Lukas pauses, then slowly crosses his arms. “I don’t want to judge them over how they look and dress,” he states firmly. “That’s all. Remember why I called us the Ocelots to begin with?” He shrugs. “Maybe they’re tougher than they look.”
Aiden narrows his eyes at the new group. “We’ll see.”
The three new competitors are in Booth Eight, right next to theirs - Booth Seven, so it’s not hard to overhear them talking.
“Olivia, I’m telling you, there’s no way it’ll work,” the one in green exclaims. “It didn’t work at the treehouse and it won’t work here.”
“And I’m telling you , Axel, I’ve got it covered this time,” the one with goggles - Olivia - argues back. She rolls her eyes. “But thanks for the vote of confidence, I definitely appreciate it.”
The one with the patchwork jacket laughs, pushing their friends away from each other. “Let’s not fight here, guys,” they reason, looking from one side to the other. “Besides, it’s only our first time here. If it doesn’t work out, we’ll get it right next year.”
“Bold words,” Aiden drawls, prowling over to where they are. The three of them whip around to stare at him, the same way Lukas does too. He smiles, having caught their attention, and goes on, “Our team here is pretty good, just saying. We’ve won for the past three years.”
“We’re the Ocelots,” Maya adds, placing one hand on her hip. “Maybe you’ve heard of us?”
“No, never,” the one in green, Axel, deadpans. The one with the patchwork jacket wrinkles their nose.
Aiden lets out a long whistle. “That’s a shame,” he says, clicking his tongue. “But, no worries. You’ll have plenty of time to get to know us. Like I said, we’re pretty good.”
“ Aiden ,” Lukas sighs. As Aiden turns to look at him Lukas glares, and walks past him. “Sorry about them,” he apologizes, extending a hand. “It’s just that we haven’t seen new competition in quite some time. But I’m sure you guys are gonna make something cool.” He puts on a smile, and continues, “I’m Lukas.”
The one with the patchwork jacket shoulders their way to the front. “Jesse,” they reply, cautiously. “These are my friends, Axel and Olivia.”
Lukas beams, genuinely this time. “Nice to meet you! These are the other Ocelots - Aiden, Gill, Maya.” He nods at each of them respectively. Be nice , he wants to warn, seeing the looks they’re giving Jesse and their team.
“Nice to meet you too,” Jesse replies stiffly. Their eyes dart down to Lukas’ hand, but they do not take it. They turn their back instead, saying, “Good luck, I suppose.”
“Good luck to you too,” Lukas calls after them, taking back his hand.
Aiden pulls Lukas aside. “Why bother putting up the ‘nice guy’ act?” he demands, scowling. “You know they’re gonna lose to us, Lou.”
“We don’t know that yet,” Lukas retorts. Then he stops. “‘Lou’?”
Aiden spins on his heel. “Never mind,” he mutters. “We’ll crush them. Just you see.”
They do, in fact, end up crushing Jesse’s team. The Ocelots crush all the other teams. They always do. Lukas glances towards Aiden as the other teams (begrudgingly?) clap and cheer. He’s grinning, the smugness written all over him. For some reason, rather than triumph, Lukas begins to feel unsettled.
Aiden brags about their fourth win on the way home. “What’d I tell ya? We won, of course. Those other teams? Urgh, if you could even call them teams - they never stood a chance against us.”
Maya laughs a little, Gill copying. Lukas gives a non-committal shrug but smiles anyway, pockets heavy from their prize - one block of diamond. Each team member had received one. Lukas side-eyes Aiden, who doesn’t look in his direction anyway, frowning.
“Like, come on.” Aiden tucks his hands behind his head. “Did you see their designs? Ugh.” He shakes his head. “Such amateur work. They call themselves builders? Especially that group of newcomers - what’s their team name again? The Dead Ends? Ha - why did they think building a pig statue with lamps for eyes could compare with anything else that’s been-”
“Why are you being like this?” Lukas demands, the words bursting out of his mouth. The other three turn towards him, eyes widened, though Aiden is the only one who appears even remotely angry.
“Uh, excuse me - why am I being like this?” Aiden drops his arms and marches up to him. “Maybe because we’ve won for - what, four years in a row?”
“That’s not what I meant,” Lukas snaps. “Come on, Aiden - just because we’ve won more than once doesn’t mean you have the right to, I dunno - let it get into your head that we’d never lose. Because you know what? Maybe we will lose some day. You ever thought about that?”
Aiden’s jaw works. Lukas squares up to him, not taking his eyes away. Aiden’s not much taller than him anyway, so that part’s not difficult. It’s his anger that scares Lukas more.
“You do realize,” Aiden starts, in a voice so quiet that Lukas can hardly hear him, “that if it weren’t for me that day, fixing up your barely-passable redstone, you wouldn’t have even had a team?”
“I-” Lukas holds his chin up high. Sure, that’s true - but it’s not like he needed Aiden specifically to make a team. He could’ve very well easily found a team on his own, even if there had been three weeks before the competition. And he tells Aiden as much: “If I recall, I’m not the one who offered to be your teammate.”
“Oh, but I’m the one who stayed,” Aiden retorts. “And if it weren’t for me, you and your needlessly-complicated designs wouldn’t have made it to the number one spot. You know that, don’t you? You would never have been able to win all those times. That was ‘cause of me .”
“Hey, that’s not fair,” Maya protests, pushing herself between Aiden and Lukas. “Aiden, I worked just as hard as you on all that redstone. And Lukas put a lot of effort into simplifying everything so we’re more resource-efficient!”
Gill steps forwards too, though silent. He looks at Lukas, then at Aiden, then at Maya, but still does not say a word.
Aiden rounds on Maya. “And who do you have to thank for getting the chance to work on it to begin with? It’s not like you had any other options besides to join us.”
“Lukas was the one who offered us our spots,” Maya argues. “You only stood in the corner and sulked. Yeah! Don’t act like we didn’t see you, Aiden. You didn’t want us there.”
“You only wanted us there once you viewed us as useful,” Gill adds, folding his arms.
“And, by the way,” Maya goes on, “Lukas is right. We can’t let winning be the only reason we build.”
Aiden gnashes his teeth. “What’s the point then, if we don’t win?” he shouts, so suddenly that the other three flinch. “Why are we even competing? It’s competitive for a reason.” And with that he glares at Lukas, pointing a finger at him. “This is your fault,” he spits. “This could’ve been another good victory. But you had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?”
Before any of the others can reply, Aiden storms off, kicking at the ground. Lukas stares after him as he wrenches off his jacket, holding it under his arm. He’s crumpled his jacket so that the ocelot face, usually grinning and stark, is no longer visible.
💧
Aiden doesn’t come back the next day. Nor the next. Lukas stays in his room for most of the time, staring up at the ceiling, Aiden’s words throttling through his mind as his throat constricts.
If it weren’t for me that day, you wouldn’t have even had a team.
Lukas didn’t need Aiden - not him in particular - both of them know this-
You would never have been able to win all those times. That was ‘cause of me .
Maybe. But Aiden’s not the only decent redstone engineer out there. He’s got Maya, too.
What’s the point then, if we don’t win? Why are we even competing?
Why do anything, if you’re not enjoying it? Why do anything, if only for the glory?
This is your fault. This could’ve been another good victory. But you had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?
Lukas pushes the words away.
Around midday, he heads to the kitchen to grab an apple. Maya and Gill are sitting at the makeshift dining table, not really doing anything. Not even talking. But they look up when Lukas enters, looking at him as if he’d grown an extra head or limb or rather.
“Hey, guys,” Lukas mumbles, digging through the cooked foods chest. “Any sign of Aiden?”
“No,” Gill sighs. “He’s still not back. I think we should just give him some space. That fight we had - he must be really angry.”
“Serves him right,” Maya snorts. “He was being unreasonable.”
Lukas shuts the chest and straightens up again. He tosses the apple he’d taken out up and down, just to give his hand something to do. “What about me?” he asks, recoiling at how flat he sounds. “Do you think I was being unreasonable?”
“No way in hell,” Maya scoffs. “You’re our leader, Lukas. You’ve got every right to call out his bull.”
“I just can’t believe he’d talk to you like that, though,” Gill says in disgust.
Aiden’s words cut through him again. You had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?
“Yeah,” Lukas says. “Me neither.”
Then it becomes the third day since Aiden stormed off, and Lukas is starting to panic. Sure, Aiden’s left for a few hours before - one full day at most - but he’s never been away this long, nor has he been away because he’s angry. He was being unreasonable, sure. Yet Lukas still feels - if something’s happened to Aiden, he can’t help but feel that it would be his fault. You had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?
“Maybe we should go looking for him,” Maya suggests that evening, eyebrows knitted together. “What if he’s lost?”
“No way,” Gill scoffs. “Aiden’s not stupid . Plus - he can handle himself. If we go looking for him he’ll just get angrier.”
“We can’t just do nothing, Gill,” Maya argues. “If something happens to him because we didn’t go after him - I couldn’t live with myself.”
Lukas slaps his hands over his face and drags them downwards. “This is my fault,” he whispers, stomach turning. “If I hadn’t - if I’d just held back-”
The front door bursts open and the three of them startle. It’s Aiden, practically kicking the door aside, and dumping a bunch of smelted iron and gold on the floor of the lounge.
Lukas stands up. “Aiden?” He takes in his friend’s expression. Still stony. Still cold.
“Aiden, thank god!” Gill throws up his hands. “Where in the world have you been? We’ve been worried sick!”
“Worried, huh?” Aiden kicks at the pile he’d just created. “If you were really worried, you’d have come lookin’.”
“We were going to,” Maya insists, giving Gill a glare as he opens his mouth to deflect. “We were, Aiden. But Gill - Gill thought it’d be good to give you time to yourself.”
Aiden’s lips curl. “Really.” Then he swivels, neatly, so that he is facing Lukas. “And how ‘bout you, Lukas? How’d you fare while I was gone?”
Lukas grits his teeth. Are you serious? A wave of anger surges through him. Aiden had been the one to leave in the first place, putting his own safety on him - how does he expect Lukas to fare? He almost says this out loud, but stops himself just in time. What if he runs off again? What if he becomes even angrier?
So instead, Lukas only asks, “Are you hurt?”
“Pssh.” Aiden rolls his eyes. “As if I’d let myself get hurt.”
Lukas glances down at the pile. “Looks like you’ve been busy,” he comments, gesturing.
“Hm? Oh, yeah.” Aiden bends down and picks up a couple of iron ingots. “I went mining. Helped a lot. Here’s some stuff I dug out of the cave systems. We can use them for future builds. You’re welcome, guys.”
Maya drops to her knees and begins scooping ingots into her arms. “Gill, help me sort these out,” she calls to him, then looking to Aiden with pursed lips. “I’m just glad you’re okay, man.”
Gill kneels too. “You were real angry. We were worried you’d do something stupid.”
Aiden shrugs. “I’ve had a lot of time to think.” He casts another look at Lukas, his face now passive. “And I’ve come to the conclusion that we are going to work hard to win, no matter what.”
“Yeah?” Maya carries the ingots over to the storage room. “We can do that. Can’t we, guys? We’re the Ocelots.”
“Yeah,” Lukas says, on an exhale. “Yeah.” He touches his bare arms, idly patting them down. “Aiden, I’m - I’m glad you’re not hurt.”
Aiden shrugs, and shoulders past him into the kitchen. “Whatever,” he mutters. “Let’s just do better, okay? We won’t need to worry about losing if we keep doing better.”
Lukas nods dazedly. “Yeah,” he says, hollowly. “Yeah. Sure. Just - don’t forget why we’re builders in the first place, alright?”
“Yeah, whatever.” Aiden ducks into the kitchen, and does not reply again. Lukas stares after him. Strangely, he doesn’t feel glad that Aiden’s back. Strangely, his stomach twists painfully, a knot in his throat. It doesn’t ease, no matter how much he swallows.
It takes him a while to realize that what Aiden said to him wasn’t really an apology.
💧
It takes another few days until Aiden no longer acts like a storm cloud and returns to being his prickly-but-nonchalant self. He studies harder, spends more time shaping up his sword work. Lukas shakes off the feeling that Aiden hasn’t taken what he’s said to heart, or thought about it at all - they’re friends, after all, Aiden wouldn’t go out of his way to hurt Lukas. This is your fault. You had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you? But he was just angry. He wouldn’t really mean to hurt Lukas. He wouldn’t really have meant that.
He discusses it with Gill and Maya first, over a breakfast of apples and melon slices. “Do you guys really think Aiden’s changed his outlook on things?” Lukas asks them, hands wrung as he peers outside. Aiden had gotten up a couple hours earlier, now viciously slashing a wooden sword into the fifth practice dummy they’ve had to craft that week. His face is motionless, besides the occasional curves and twists from the effort of all that swinging.
Maya takes a bite out of the apple Gill has just passed her. “I dunno,” she says with a shrug. “He’s hot-headed, sure. And he can be mean sometimes.” She snorts, smiling. “But I like to use it as motivation to prove him wrong, when he says something unpleasant.”
“He’s bold..” Gill scratches his chin. “He would make for a good leader if he weren’t so stubborn. He never wants to hear anyone else’s opinions. Not even yours, Lukas.”
Lukas blows out a heavy breath. “I’m just worried,” he admits. “If he’s going to keep using the idea of ‘crushing’ others as his motivation - I’m just not sure how healthy that is.”
To his surprise, Maya then says, “Maybe we should just leave it, Lukas? He’s back now, anyway, so surely he thinks you’re right, to some extent.”
“Or we could just ignore him,” Gill proposes. “He’ll come ‘round once he sees we don’t tolerate his attitude.”
Lukas frowns. “What about just talking to him about it? We can’t get anywhere just assuming he’s going to behave one way or another.”
Neither of them speak again after that. They simply give him the same look, contrite, and carry on their breakfast in silence.
Lukas decides to bring it up with Aiden anyway. The twisting in his stomach is still there, one week since Aiden returned from his mining trip. Despite the whole seven days, the pair of them have barely talked. He is throwing punches at a practice dummy when Lukas finds him outside, the sun beginning to droop downwards into the distance.
“Hey, Aiden,” he greets him, trying to sound casual. “Uh, working out again, right?”
“Mmh.” Aiden punches the dummy’s head. “In case of, y’know. Zombies ‘n them.”
Lukas looks at Aiden’s knuckles, red and bruising. “Wouldn’t it be better if you used a sword?” he suggests genuinely. “You’re gonna wear out your hands.”
“And what if I don’t have a sword when it gets dark at night?” Aiden’s lip curls. “Hand-to-hand is also important.”
Lukas shrugs. “I suppose.”
Aiden punches the dummy once more, then steps back. “You could use some practice, too,” he notes, wiping his palms on his front. “I know, I know, you always say - ‘the hand is mightier when it holds a pen’ - but it could still do you some good.”
Lukas folds his arms and leans against the post nearby. “I’ll think about it.”
Aiden turns his head towards him. “Why are you really here, Lukas?” He narrows his eyes. “We haven’t talked since-” He cuts himself off with a roll of the eyes. “Whatever. Just spit it out.”
Lukas rolls his own eyes. “Look, Aiden - I know you want us all to get even better at building and such. So I just wanted to check if that’s really all. You said you’ve had time to think?”
A shadow passes over Aiden’s face. But it is gone so quickly that Lukas convinces himself he’s just imagined it. His friend rolls his shoulder blades, lazily turning to face him fully.
“I want to win,” Aiden states flatly, jabbing a thumb at himself. “Of course I want to. I’ve worked so hard all these years - it’d be a waste of my time and skills if some nobodies won against me. Against us .” He sighs, and lowers his hand. “I think you took my words the wrong way,” he continues. “I only meant to say how awesome you guys are to work with. I wouldn’t have come this far if not for you guys, either.” He casts a glance at Lukas, eyes wide and shining. “I’ve only ever wanted the best for us. It’s natural, right? Wanting the best for yourself and the people you love? That’s why I want us to keep working on our stuff, so that we can make sure we never lose. Because I want the best for us four. Will you take my word for it, Lou?”
There it is again - that flimsy nickname. No one has ever called him anything besides Lukas, not since he picked out this name. He doesn’t know what to make of it. It doesn’t feel bad , per se, when Aiden calls him Lou, but it’s still new, and all new things come with a small blip of surprise.
Lukas sighs, and unfolds his arms. “I hear you,” he replies. “But I also - I just want to make sure you’re still doing this because you’re passionate about building. That’s ultimately the reason we go to compete, right?”
Aiden’s lips are still working. He nods, albeit stiffly. “I know,” he mutters. “I know. Lou - you don’t ever need to doubt me when it comes to passion.” He straightens up, pointing at himself again. “I’m here ‘cause I want to build. To build as a team. Don’t ever doubt me again, alright?”
Lukas doesn’t take his eyes off him. Aiden looks so sure of himself, so fixated on a distant target that’s yet to even exist. But determined people are people whose skin grows thick against surrender. Aiden’s bravado is admirable, even if Lukas doesn’t completely agree with how he’s going about it.
Even then, instead of simply nodding and walking away, Lukas asks, “Why’re you calling me ‘Lou’?”
Aiden recoils. “Excuse me?”
Lukas shakes his head. “Three times already, Aiden. You’ve called me ‘Lou’ three times.”
Aiden goes uncharacteristically quiet. His hands fumble, fidgeting so badly that he shoves them in his pockets to hide the mere fact.
He doesn’t look at Lukas when he gives his answer of, “Well, I dunno. It’s been quite a few years now, and we’re good friends, aren’t we? Thought it’d be appropriate, to start calling you by a nickname.”
Lukas nods. “I see.”
Aiden snaps his head up. “What, d’you not like it?” His eyes are wide, something like remorse on his face. “I figured ‘Lou’ was more appropriate than ‘Luke’, so-”
“I do like it,” Lukas interrupts him with a laugh. “I - I mean, it’s fine. I don’t mind if you want to call me that. Up to you.”
Aiden’s shoulders sag. “Oh. Oh, okay then.” He cracks a weak smile, and shrugs as if nothing had ever happened. “I’ll see about that then, huh?”
Lukas copies his shrug. “Suit yourself.”
Aiden smiles in proper now. “Great.” He pats himself down and clears his throat. “Say, Lou - d’you want to train some time? Gill and Maya should tag along. We’ve gotta keep up our stamina from more than one source, not just spleef - that’s important for building, too.”
A smile is on Lukas’ face before he knows it. “Of course,” he exclaims. “That sounds great.” If he tells it to himself enough, it’ll almost sound like he means it.
💧
Gill is elated when Aiden brings up the prospect of weekly combat training as a team. They dedicate a few hours a week to sparring each other, and though none of them will admit it they all know they’re no Order of the Stone level of fighters. Just decent enough to hold off mindless hostile mobs. And Aiden’s the best of them - that is for certain - though none of the other three really push to try harder than they actually need to.
Lukas isn’t particularly fond of how it feels, holding a sword. Even a wooden one is far heavier than any quill he’s picked up, and oftentimes he has to bandage his hands from all the blistering. He knows it’s necessary, learning to use one. You can’t exactly survive in this world without weapons - so he copes, or tries to, at least. He’d rather have sore hands than being dead.
How does Petra manage it? He admires how sharp she is with a blade in her hand, how fearlessly she throws herself at the obstacles ahead, refusing to come out the other side defeated. In many ways she’s a lot like Aiden. Except Petra is honest in a good way, and doesn’t gloat more than she has to. And she definitely doesn’t sit around taunting other people because of her skill.
Aiden often waits until he’s sparred Gill and Maya before he spars with Lukas, at which point both of them are somewhat sluggish from all the day’s effort. But Aiden’s eyes are sharp and gleaming every time, and he careens into Lukas’s sword with a ferocity that suggests he wouldn’t go easy on anyone, let alone his closest friends. Lukas pushes back feebly, seeing his sword splinter every time, and even when he puts in every ounce of his energy he’s always the one toppling to the grass, panting, sword snapped beyond repair.
And Aiden never helps him up afterwards. “Ha! I win again, Lou.” He dusts himself off as Lukas collects the remains of his sword. Then Aiden will make some comment or another, something along the lines of: “You’ve really gotta step it up, seeing as you’re our leader and all. You can’t have an underling like me be stronger than you.”
And every time Lukas will laugh right back, pretending that it doesn’t sting, and say, “I guess physical strength isn’t my best quality. But I suppose it matters that I’m tough overall, right, guys?”
“ Would be helpful if you were stronger,” Aiden chortles. “I’d like to see the day where you beat me , Lukas. So far, I’ve got a pretty consistent winning streak.”
He wins the next spar with Lukas. And the next, and the next, and the next, and the next - and Lukas finally accepts it himself that he’s never going to beat Aiden in a fight. Aiden’s more muscle than Lukas is, and fights far wilder, far more intensely - whereas Lukas is doing all he can to show what skill he possesses while not hurting his friend. Over the weeks they move from wooden swords to stone. Lukas is faring even worse with the latter - he dreads thinking about how he might fight with iron or gold or even diamond, if something made of stone is making his wrist hurt this much. It’s almost embarrassing to admit how much it pains him, but Gill notices, and brings him bandages when he needs, confessing also of how little he likes the feel. “Doesn’t help that Aiden fights like he’s tryna be Gabriel or something,” he adds, referencing the famous warrior. “He’s not gentle at all.”
Lukas shrugs, winding the bandages around his sore palm. “I’m sure he just wants to be the best possible fighter that he can be,” he reasons, and for a second he’s not sure if he’s trying to convince Gill, or himself.
The Ocelots decide, unanimously, to continue signing up for the yearly Endercon building competition. They’ve already won four years in a row - what would be the point in stopping now? On days where the sun shines especially bright they go out to find new materials to build with. They collect the more common resources by hand - stone, wood, sand, ores. It takes much longer to find rarer items - uncommon dyes, precious gems, and the whole list of things that can only be found in other dimensions. “But you have that friend of yours, right?” Aiden would ask, eyes gleaming. “What’s her name, Penny?”
“Petra,” Lukas would correct him.
“Right, Petra. You can get her to help us with finding stuff, right? You’ve asked her to help before.”
Lukas would pause, looking over his notes. “I suppose,” he’d say, already wondering how he should pay her for her services.
Lukas stays up far too many hours to work on new design ideas, spending rainy days inside with Aiden and Maya to discuss the redstone, and then some conversations over meals with Gill about his opinions too. They spend some days resting up at home. They spend others tinkering in the yard outside their house. They spend each competition driven, driven, each new design riveted so deeply in their muscle memories that they could build it together in their sleep. And each year, the Ocelots walk away with prizes and the victor’s title. Four years in a row becomes five, then six, then seven, then eight. The numbers pile. The prizes pile higher. The Ocelots become the most renown building team Endercon has ever seen - and not a moment too soon, the others think, as crowds of people gather each year at the convention to admire the team’s handiwork.
That new team, though - the Dead Enders, Lukas finds out they’re called - they still come every year, too, the three of them: Axel, Olivia and Jesse. Lukas will admit, their perseverance is admirable - even if their designs are a bit sloppy, their redstone passable, and their materials cheap. But the three of them do look like they’re having fun while they build, even if they lose their smiles once the Ocelots take their crown again. And then Lukas will look at his own teammates. He sees the smiles on each of them, but they’re different, somehow. Aiden’s long since declared himself true to his competitive nature, but Lukas swears that Gill and Maya are starting to take on that persona themselves. Every new win, every next prize, he sees it - just a little more greed in their eyes, just a little more hunger for recognition as the other competitors cheer. Lukas is ashamed to admit that it feels unsettling, and is even more ashamed to admit that he doesn’t stop them from boasting. Of course he doesn’t join in on their goading, doesn’t let his skill get into his head. Some part of him hopes that by ignoring them, he’s indicating to them that their behaviour isn’t worth paying attention to. Either that, or he’s just enabling them even further. But these people, his team - they’re Lukas’ friends. Arrogant or not, he owes them for their victories just as much as they owe him. They’ve all grown so much from the band of nobodies who joined hands out of necessity all those years ago. And , Lukas thinks, privately, not entirely for the better.
They walk home after their tenth Endercon together, Maya and Gill trading their enchantment book rewards, laughing as they wonder what tools they’ll use them on.
“Gotta say,” Maya whistles, “it does look like we’re set out to win every year, huh, guys? I mean, you hafta admit, ten years in a row is pretty impressive.”
Gill tucks his hands into his pockets. “Aiden, you were right,” he declares. “Winning every year is pretty motivating.”
Aiden smirks, and glances down at Lukas. “See, what’d I tell ya? We’re pretty great.”
Lukas shrugs idly. He leafs through his own enchantment book. Unbreaking II. “I suppose we are,” he says cautiously.
Gill smiles. “We’ll probably never lose ever again, right?”
“No,” Aiden replies immediately. “No way in hell now. It’s been t en freakin’ years , guys! We’ve won fair and square.”
Maya sniggers. “That one other team, what’re they called again? Y’know, who built that pig their first year-”
Lukas purses his lips. “The Dead Enders?”
“Yeah, them, or whatever. They’ve got guts, showing up each year with that kinda hopeful attitude. It’s pathetic. Can’t they take a hint already? They’re not going to win.”
“Yeah, right?” Gill rolls his eyes. “They rock up to the competition and build basically the same thing each year. It’s like they’re not capable of creativity or something.”
Aiden bursts into laughter. “They should keep showing up,” he sneers. “I love seeing the look on their faces when we wipe the floor with them, and everyone else there.” He elbows Lukas with a grin, cocking his eyebrows. “Right, Lou?”
Lukas looks away. “Their designs could have used some more thought,” he says slowly, guilt seeping into him the moment the words leave his mouth. What am I doing? He’s not one to gossip about people like this. Even if what he’s said is the truth. He shrugs, pursing his lips again. “Let’s just hurry, guys. The longer we stay out here the more dangerous it’ll get.”
“Okay, firstly - you’re no fun,” Aiden scoffs. “And secondly, you’re too soft. ‘Could have used more thought’? Lou - they definitely needed more thought. Did you see the state of their builds? An Enderman could even do better than that.”
Lukas almost rolls his eyes, but stops himself. Aiden’s words from years ago filters into his mind. You had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you? He blows out a breath instead, and replies, “They’re just here to build, remember? Same as us.” He brushes off his sleeves, tucking the book into his pocket. “Don’t forget that, guys.”
Aiden scoffs again. “There’s a massive line between ‘building’ and
‘embarrassing the shit out of yourselves’. But whatever you say, Lou.”
Lukas says nothing else.
💧
The Ocelots’ eleventh year - they win again. Aiden punches the air with a grin, Gill and Maya following suit. Lukas claps alongside everyone else, smiling as humbly as he can. He catches glance of Jesse, the Dead Enders’ leader, standing across from him. Their arms are folded, and they’re staring up at the statue the Ocelots had built. Something about the way their eyes and face are cold makes Lukas’ own smile slip.
Then Aiden claps him over the back. “Nice work today, huh?” he says loudly, looking around to see if anyone’s listening. “Great job, Lukas. We couldn’t have done it without your careful thought and consideration .”
Jesse’s already-hard expression grows even harder. Lukas grimaces. “You guys helped too,” he replies, just as loudly. “We’re a great team, huh?”
Jesse of the Dead Enders stalks away. Lukas sighs, and does not bother smiling again.
Their twelfth year - another win. Lukas is particularly proud of his work this time, a lighthouse with fluorescent rainbow lights, but again he celebrates the victory quietly, watching as Aiden, Gill and Maya fist bump each other and then go to fist bump him. “Why does anyone else bother trying?” Aiden laughs. “Look at us - we’re invincible.”
Gill nudges him. “Good point, Aiden,” he hoots. “Us Ocelots will never lose.”
“Not in a million years,” Maya crows.
“Ugh.” Axel of the Dead Enders shakes his head as he walks past. “You guys done bragging yet? We get it, you’re good .”
Aiden turns towards him. “Excuse me?”
Axel gives an exaggerated roll of the eyes. “I said, you can shut up now. You don’t need to rub it in our faces every time.”
“Leave it, Axel,” Olivia sighs from beside him. “Let’s just go home.”
Aiden laughs, eyes transfixed on the other team. “You should listen to your friend,” he sneers. “After all, wouldn’t you like to know what it’s like to come out on top, huh?”
Lukas flattens his lips. “Aiden,” he calls, grabbing hold of his jacket sleeve. “That’s enough. Time to go.”
Aiden stares back at Lukas, jaw open and working. “What? We’ve earned the right to brag. We’ve won twelve years in a row.” He jerks his arm away, scowling. “You still can’t accept that we’re better than everyone else?”
Lukas lowers his gaze. “It’s not that,” he mutters. Then, louder, “Maya, Gill - let’s go. We’re done here.”
Aiden groans, contemptuous, but does not argue. “You coward, Lou,” he snarks. “You and your shit-talk.”
Lukas tries to ignores him. You and your shit-talk. He tries to ignore the stares from the Dead Enders. The scorn in their eyes is enough to say everything, anyway.
Their thirteenth year - before building even begins, Aiden’s scanning the site for the Dead Enders, smirking.
“Oh my god ,” he snorts, as the team heads up to the check-in desk. “Is that a fucking pig?”
The Dead Enders do indeed have a pig with them - a small thing, with a darker patch on its back. It clings to Jesse’s side with wide eyes, butting its head against their hand. A pet , Lukas realizes. A companion.
Maya scoffs. “Are they even allowed to bring a pig in here? Hey!” She waves at the Dead Enders, baring her teeth. “Hey, you Dead Ends! So kind of you to bring us a snack!”
Not this again. Lukas’ lips twitch but he doesn’t say anything. He pulls his attention away from the other Ocelots, and focuses instead on organizing the materials before him.
“Lukas, check it out.” Gill nudges him with his foot. “They have an actual pig .”
Lukas doesn’t look up. “So? Let them have a pig if they want.”
Gill makes a non-committal sound. “Do you think they’re going to use it in their build? No way, right? That should be against the rules.”
Lukas shuts the chest and heaves himself to his feet. “It won’t affect us if they’re disqualified,” he asserts. “You should stop staring at them. We’ve got work to do.”
Gill’s brows furrow. He slowly places a hand onto each hip, his earlier grin now turning into a look of confusion. “You really won’t let yourself let loose a bit, huh?” He shrugs innocently when Lukas raises his eyebrows at him. “Look at us, Lukas. We’re the best team. We’ve been on top of this competition for years. Me ‘n Maya are starting to see what Aiden means now, y’know. You can’t keep on walking and worry about crushing the bugs beneath your feet.”
Lukas looks onwards in Aiden and Maya’s direction. “That was weirdly poetic,” he comments, lips pulling.
Gill smiles a little. “You need to focus on what’s ahead,” he goes on. “And for us, that’s winning, no matter what. If there’s an obstacle in the way, you force it to the side, even if you have to get your hands dirty to do so.”
Lukas nods. “Okay,” he sighs, though his heart isn’t really in it. “But ignoring the obstacles entirely is also an option, Gill. We don’t have to sit and scream at them. We can walk around them instead.”
Gill shrugs. “You and Aiden both have valid points,” he murmurs. “I’ve just been realizing that I want to live more carefree.”
“Even if it means bringing others down?” Lukas challenges him.
Gill merely shrugs again.
The Ocelots win again, of course. As soon as the announcement’s made Aiden’s already searching for the Dead Enders, jeering at them with fire in his eyes. Gill and Maya join him, whooping. Lukas stares up at his team’s work, pieced together by all four of their minds, and the colour begins slipping from his world.
💧
Two and a half weeks before their fourteenth Endercon building competition, Aiden declares out of the blue that the Ocelots are going to train in combat. It’s late in the afternoon, a cool breeze on the air, and the others have nothing else to do so they grab their swords and head to the courtyard outside.
Lukas’ sword is pressed hard against Aiden’s. They’re sparring each other - the last spar for the day - and Aiden has him backed into a corner, his grin feral.
“Are you even trying, Lou?” Aiden laughs at a point, leaping back easily to let Lukas catch his breath. “Come on. Put your heart into it!” He swings his sword back at Lukas, raising his own to deflect at the last second.
“I am,” Lukas calls, wiping his face. “I swear I am!” He pushes harder against Aiden’s blade just to prove it, slightly knocking him back.
“Come on, Lukas! Don’t go easy on me.” Aiden dodges Lukas’ next blow and jabs. “You gonna fight this bad when it turns dark?”
Of course not. Lukas ignores him and defends again, bending his knees. Aiden strikes him over and over, each swing of his sword sending a shock through Lukas’ arms. He shoves his weight back, grinding his teeth to dust. Aiden’s barely giving him any time to breathe, let alone attack. All he can do is fend off his friend, but his arms are giving, and-
Lukas’ sword snaps.
Then he’s splayed back-first on the grass with a wheeze. Pain tears through his right arm and he hisses, gripping it, gasping as blood pours out from the gash in his jacket, his skin.
Aiden hovers over him, shaking his head. “Lukas! What the hell were you doing? You call that a duel?”
“Woah,” Gill exclaims, running over from the sidelines. “Lukas - man, are you alright?”
Lukas steadies his left hand on the grass beside him and sits, far too dizzy for his own liking. “Shoot,” he says, staring at his injured arm. “I’m bleeding.”
Maya jumps and bolts towards the house. “I’ll see if we have more gauze,” she calls.
Aiden frowns. “Huh? Wait, you’re saying I actually cut you?”
Gill shoots him a look so nasty that even Lukas recoils. “Yeah, you cut him, Aiden! Here, Lukas, lemme help you up.” He grabs hold of Lukas’ left arm and hauls him to his feet. “Let’s go inside. We’re done for the day.”
“Thanks, Gill,” Lukas says, still dazed.
The two of them walk into their house, Aiden at their heels.
“Wait, wait, come on,” Aiden scoffs. “Lou - I didn’t hit you that hard, okay? You can’t seriously be bleeding over something like this.”
Lukas wrinkles his nose as Maya fixes the gauze around his arm, but he doesn’t reply. He can’t reply. He’s blanking out, staring at his shoes, and not because of the pain.
“Would you stop that!” Gill snaps. “Like it or not, Aiden, you hurt Lukas. I’m honestly surprised it took years for one of us to get hurt, seeing how damn into the sparring you are.”
“What? Come on!” Aiden throws up his hands. “Why are you putting this on me? If you three took this training more seriously and actually fought me instead of stalling, maybe this wouldn’t have happened in the first place!”
“There’s a difference between ‘fighting’ and ‘being out to kill someone’,” Gill retorts. “Aiden, you fight like you mean us genuine harm, and frankly, I’m not cool with that.”
“Neither am I,” Maya says, standing up. “There, Lukas, that should be all good now.”
Lukas smiles weakly at her. “Thanks, Maya. Really.”
“Oh, come on!” Aiden glares at them. “You guys can’t be serious . It’s the same as building - what’s the point of training if you’re not gonna take it seriously? We might as well just sit around outside and let ourselves be eaten alive by zombies, the way you guys fling yourselves around.”
“Stop it, Aiden,” Lukas sighs. “Let’s just drop it.”
“Oh, look who’s talking,” Aiden sneers. “You call yourself our leader, but look at you. I cut you with a stone sword, Lukas. What are you gonna do if someone, someday, threatens you with iron or gold? Or even diamond, if you’re lucky? ‘Cause I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass.”
Lukas clenches his fists.
“Speaking of,” Maya starts, “aren’t you going to apologize?”
“Apologize?” Aiden barks out a laugh. “For what? Honesty?”
“ For hurting Lukas, ” Maya elaborates coldly.
Aiden huffs. “He had it coming. If none of you are gonna put in the effort to defend yourselves, that’s what’s gonna happen. You. Get. Hurt.”
“You’re talking like we should expect ourselves to hurt each other!” Gill accuses him. “We’re a team , Aiden! We can train together and avoid injury.”
Aiden does not turn away. “You have to get hurt to get stronger,” he states, matter-of-factly. “It’s how you do anything . You can’t seriously expect to do something and not learn from the mistakes you’ve made.”
Maya shifts uncomfortably. “I guess that’s true,” she muses. “But that doesn’t mean you have to go out of your way to make those mistakes.”
Lukas releases the tension in his hands, and presses one to the side of his head. “Guys,” he pleads. “Let’s just stop it here. It was an accident.” The look in Aiden’s eyes comes back to him - fierce, brutal, unrelenting. “It was just an accident,” he repeats, pushing the memory away.
“No,” Gill blurts. “Not until Aiden apologizes.”
“Just drop it, okay?” Lukas heaves himself to his feet. Angrily, he continues, “There’s nothing to apologize for.” He grabs his jacket and an apple from the table before he heads into his room. “Night, guys.”
“But it’s not even sundown yet,” Maya calls after him, puzzled.
Lukas shuts his door and sits, tossing his jacket on the bed. He stares at the apple, at his bandaged hands, bandaged arm. Aiden’s words trickle back into his head. What are you gonna do if someone, someday, threatens you with iron or gold or even diamond? ‘Cause I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass.
He blows out a breath and brings the apple closer to his lips. Aiden’s right , he thinks, glumly, biting into the flesh of the fruit. I do need to step it up. Even if he’s just lazing off for now - what if some day in the future, the four of them face something dangerous - far more dangerous than what they’ve already faced? Lukas is the Ocelots’ leader - there’s no way that he should be relying on the others when they should be relying him. You call yourself our leader, but look at you. Yeah, look at him. He’s not tough, nor is he made of muscle. All he has are his brains and his words and a kindness that he hopes will inspire others to be kind, too. But what about the physical world? If someone, something tries to hurt or, god forbid - kill the other Ocelots, Lukas needs to be able to protect them. If something were to happen to them because he wasn’t able to fend off whatever was out for them, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself.
The door to his room opens and Lukas glances up. Aiden stands in the threshold, arms crossed, eyes narrowed, expression giving nothing away about what he’s going to say next.
“All right?” he inquires. His tone is flat.
Lukas distracts himself by eating more of his apple. “Mm.”
Aiden’s eyes trail downwards to Lukas’ injured arm. “Does it hurt?”
Lukas pauses. It does hurt, and it might just be the worst wound he’s gotten in years, but it could be worse. And Aiden would scoff at Lukas again if he told him this. So he lies, replying, “I’m managing.”
Aiden exhales through his mouth. “I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he states. “I thought you could handle yourself against me.”
Lukas shrugs. “I thought I could, too. Maybe I am soft, after all.”
Aiden’s lips quirk at this. “It’s not that I want you to hurt me during spars, or whatever,” he continues, leaning against the doorframe. “I want you to be able to do what you need to do, in the face of people or things that mean us harm.”
“I know,” Lukas mutters. “I know.”
Aiden’s face twists slightly, then he sighs. “Want me to help patch up that sleeve?” he offers, gesturing at the tear in Lukas’ jacket.
Lukas is smiling for some reason. “Sure, that’d be good. Thanks, Aiden.”
Aiden prowls over and takes Lukas’ jacket. “Whatever. Hm.” He examines the sleeve. “You got any more of those ocelot patches? While I’m at it, the rest of us might as well upgrade our jackets to leather, like you.”
“Oh.” Lukas looks in the direction of his desk. “I don’t think I have any left right now. But the recipe for them should be somewhere over there, if you wanna try your hand at it yourself.”
“Mhm.” Aiden moves swiftly over to the desk and rummages through the papers. “I’ll see what I can do. Oh, and another thing-” Aiden picks up a page and slips it into his pocket. “Has your friend Petra been able to drop off that Nether Star yet? Gill and I are heading out tomorrow for obsidian.”
“Hm? Oh. Yeah, she has,” Lukas tells him. “It’s in that chest over there.” He’d come up with the idea of a rainbow beacon for this year’s build - but it isn’t like he has the skills to waltz into the Nether, build a Wither and kill it. He’d come up with a few backup plans if Petra couldn’t get him the Star, but god knows how she does anything because a week after he’d requested it she’d left it in the Ocelots’ mailbox with a note: thank me when you see me next.
Aiden raises his eyebrows. He bends down to open the chest, rifling through its contents.
“I’m not lying,” Lukas says with narrowed eyes. “You don’t need to go through all my stuff.” He’s got a lot of personal items and late-night writings in there. Even if he’s been friends with Aiden for years, there are still a number of things he’d prefer to be his-eyes-only. Lukas shifts, uncomfortably, just at the thought of Aiden touching it all.
“I just want to look at it,” Aiden claims, gasping a little as he cradles the Star in his palm. “Woah. It’s beautiful.”
Lukas sighs. “Yeah, I guess we won’t get to look at it once it’s been crafted into a beacon.”
Aiden nods. “See? That’s exactly why I asked.” He puts the Star back into Lukas’ chest and closes it. “Well, anyway, you - rest up, I guess. I’ll go sort out our jackets.”
Lukas looks back at his apple, the edges from where he’d bitten now turning brown. “Yeah,” he mumbles. “Night, Aiden.”
“Night, Lou.”
Aiden is gone after that. Lukas doesn’t look away. He keeps staring at his apple, half-eaten in the open plains of his palm.
💧
The Ocelots’ fourteenth building competition together, somehow, is the first one where all four of them are wearing the ocelot face on black leather. Aiden, Gill and Maya had sewn it onto their jackets when they’d first become a team all those years ago. But all three of them had been wearing denim rather than leather. Now all four of them sport the same dark leather, the same grinning ocelot face.
They’re checking into their booth on the day - beautiful, cloudless, warm. Lukas is the one talking to the announcer, who at this point must be sick of seeing his face every year.
“Well well well,” Aiden sneers as the announcer writes down their names. “If it isn’t the Dead Ends.”
Lukas peeks over his shoulder. It’s Jesse and their friends, ruffled as ever. The pig that had come with them last year is here again too - though this time clad in an Ender Dragon costume.
“Great,” Maya snorts. “The fail squad’s here.”
Gill nudges him. “Lukas, get a load of these losers!”
Lukas rolls his eyes before he turns. “Let's go, guys.”
He pulls Aiden away before he or Gill or Maya can insult the Dead Enders any further. The four of them file into their booth - Booth Four - and Lukas wastes no time unpacking.
Aiden makes a noise of disgust. “I see you’re still putting up the ‘Mister Nice Guy’ act.”
Lukas sighs, but doesn’t say anything else. Aiden scoffs, and plants his hands on his hips. “You’re no fun,” he mutters, petulant.
Lukas ignores him and carefully places the stained glass into the chest, followed by the beacon. He takes a moment to just look at it, to feel the weight of it in his hand. The inconvenience that must had been to get it.
“Ha!” Gill leers at something in the distance. “Look, guys, it's the Dead Ends. Again.”
Maya slaps him gently on the arm. “Good one, Gill!”
“We're just looking,” comes Olivia’s voice, cross.
Aiden skirts over. “There’ll be plenty of time for you to look at it after it wins and gets shown at Endercon,” he drawls.
“Ugh,” goes Axel. “You're being unpleasant.”
“Hmm. Maybe not all of you.” Aiden gestures at the Dead Ends’ costume-clad pig. “‘Cause Endercon doesn't allow outside food or drink-”
“Shut up.” Jesse’s voice cuts through Aiden’s, clear and cold. Lukas startles a little upon hearing it. He looks over, seeing them with their arms crossed. He would’ve never expected someone who appears so soft and harmless to sound so utterly cold.
Aiden holds a nonchalant hand to his ear. “What’s that? Can’t hear you.”
“Jesse said ‘shut up’,” Olivia spits. “Do you need to hear it again?”
Aiden pulls back his hand, and crosses his own arms. “I dunno,” he replies, tone exaggerated. “Maybe.”
Lukas hauls himself up. “Stop wasting your time, Aiden,” he scolds. “We’ve got work to do.”
Aiden whips around. He narrows his eyes, then turns back to the Dead Enders. “You’re lucky I’m busy,” he snarks, walking away nonetheless.
Lukas lets out a breath.
Before any of them can actually busy themselves, Petra - Petra , of all people - slinks around the fences, an iron pickaxe slung over her shoulder. Lukas’ eyes widen. He hasn’t seen her since he asked her to get the Ocelots that Nether Star. In fact - now that he thinks about it, he’s never seen her around the Endercon building competition at all.
“Hey, Jesse. Guys.” She nods at Jesse and the Ocelots respectively.
Jesse’s cold expression melts. “Hey, Petra,” they greet her.
Lukas does a slight double take. Jesse knows Petra?
“How's the build going?” Petra asks, glancing around the booths.
Axel shrugs. “Only time will tell,” he says. “But we’re optimistic.”
Lukas shoulders his way to the front. “Petra,” he calls, smiling. “Nice seeing you. Thanks again for the Nether Star, by the way.”
The corners of Petra’s lips curve upwards. “Hey, Lukas. Not a problem.”
Axel’s brow shoots sky-high. “You helped these tools?” he demands, his tone accusatory. Lukas’ lips flatten. He turns his head slightly.
Petra shrugs though, unbothered. “For the right price, I’ll help anyone.” She spins on her heel and begins heading off. “If you need anything, you know where to find me.”
“None of us know where to find you,” Olivia points out.
“Exactly,” Petra calls over her shoulder, smirking for the life of her.
Lukas clears his throat. “No hard feelings guys,” he says, trying his best to sound friendly. “If you’re cool with Petra, you’re cool with us.” He glances quickly at Aiden before going on, “So, why don’t we just forget about all this, and, y’know - make this about how cool our builds are?”
Jesse narrows their eyes. The coldness they’d been wearing returns at once. They cock their head to one side.
“We’re cool with Petra,” they reply easily, “but you need to teach your friends some manners.” They look away from Lukas, glaring at Aiden.
Lukas sighs. “He’s just trying to get in your head,” he explains. He touches his right arm, scarred from their spar those weeks ago. You and your shit-talk. I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass.
“Well,” Jesse retorts, “it’s possible to be nice and win.”
Aiden snorts. “Sounds like something a loser would say.”
The announcer begins speaking then, so Lukas herds the Ocelots away. He casts Jesse a remorseful look, but they’re not even looking at him. Lukas sighs again, and readies his hands for work.
The steps are simple. Lukas recalls them easily as soon as the timer starts. He passes materials to Gill while Maya and Aiden work on the redstone. Occasionally he looks up to see what the Dead Enders are doing in the booth next to theirs, and is surprised to see them rigging up a fireworks machine. Oh, wow! Why hadn’t Lukas thought of that? The Ocelots had made something similar quite a few years back, before Jesse’s team had even started competing, but they hadn’t revisited the idea since.
Lukas shakes his head. A rainbow beacon is pretty cool too , he thinks, trying to feel as confident as he wants to be.
“Ugh.” By the tone of his voice, Aiden’s noticed the fireworks machine too. “Fireworks? Seriously? Those went out of fashion years ago,” he calls over to the Dead Enders.
Jesse, standing atop the mess of pistons, rolls their eyes at him. “You worry about your build and we’ll worry about ours,” they snap. Aiden scoffs. Jesse turns back to their work.
The Dead Enders finish their build first - a woollen creeper statue hiding the fireworks machine behind it. Olivia, standing atop the statue, activates the machine. Fireworks whizz out and expand in bright bursts of colour. Lukas swivels to look. The crowd around them gathers to watch.
“Good build, man!” someone from a nearby booth calls.
Lukas can’t help but grin. Of all the builds the Dead Enders have made thus far, this one is definitely the most eye-catching. He almost calls out some praise of his own, but catches Aiden’s contorted expression, and stops himself.
“No way.” Aiden shakes his head, teeth and fists clenched. “It's just a bunch of dyed wool!” He storms over to the edge of the Ocelots’ booth, scooting out towards Booth Three, and punches a stone block. “Whoops,” he exclaims, throwing his hands up as lava cascades out.
Lukas gapes at him. “Aiden! What the hell are you-”
The Dead Enders’ pig squeals then, leaping this-way-that. One wing of its costume is aflame and in a panic, the poor animal scampers away.
“Reuben! Reuben, no! Come back!” Jesse scrambles off the creeper statue, sliding down to get to the ground. “Guys, come on - we have to go after him!”
“But what about the build?” Axel calls. The legs of the wool creeper are starting to catch. “It’s gonna burn down!”
“You heard Jesse!” Olivia whaps him on the back and too leaps off the group’s statue. “We can’t just let them go alone. Get a move-on, Axel!”
Lukas stares after the three of them as they run out of the competition grounds and after the pig. The smell of smoke hits the air. I should help them put out the fire , Lukas thinks. But he’s frozen, not even moving to finish his own build, and only stands there, as Endercon staff rush into the booth to throw water over the smoldering wool.
“What a mess!” one of the staff members exclaims. “I think we can safely say that the team in Booth Four are disqualified.”
Disqualified. That hasn’t happened before. Lukas stares at the ashen remains of Jesse’s build. The fireworks are still shooting out of the dispensers.
“Lukas, come on!” Maya calls. “We don’t have much time left!”
Lukas pulls himself together again. “Sorry,” he calls back, hopping up to place everything where it needs to go. For the remainder of the building time, Aiden wears a triumphant smirk, and Lukas’ blood simmers.
💧
It shouldn’t surprise him that the Ocelots win, again . What does surprise him is what he overhears.
“Real pity,” a judge sighs to the announcer, as Endercon staff prepare to transport the Ocelots’ build to the convention. “Those poor bastards in Booth Four actually stood a decent chance this year. If theirs hadn’t burned down I’d have made damn sure that they won for once.”
“But hey,” the announcer points out, “a rainbow beacon is also pretty impressive.”
Lukas’ blood begins to boil.
“Lou!” Aiden jogs over to him, grinning. “I knew it! I knew a rainbow beacon was the way to go this year.”
“Yeah, way to go!” Gill pats Lukas on the shoulder. “You’re a great builder, Lukas. All of us are.”
“We’re a great team ,” Maya corrects him, but she’s grinning too. “Woo! And we get to talk to the Gabriel this year!” She pulls out the keynote tickets they’d received as their prize, fanning herself with them. “Oh, this is gonna be great .”
Aiden’s grin slides off his face. “Lou? You don’t look happy.”
Lukas lifts his head and stares straight into Aiden’s eyes. “You broke that block,” he states, seething. “The Dead Enders’ build burned down because you let lava get out of safe bounds.”
“Woah, woah, I burned down their build?” Aiden throws up his hands. “I was saving our build, Lukas. I was securing our victory.”
Lukas shakes his head. “Does that look like victory to you?” he demands, jabbing a thumb towards Booth Four. “I can’t believe you, Aiden. First you insist on downplaying the work of everyone else here - fine, let your building do the talking. But this?” Lukas walks so close to Aiden that he is mere breaths away from touching him. “This is too far. You destroyed the work of another team. There’s no fair victory in that.”
“Woah, Lukas.” Maya steps forwards and pushes him and Lukas away from each other. “Aiden didn’t mean to do that, I’m sure. Right, Aiden?” She glances expectantly at him.
Aiden’s expression is twisting. “Everything I do,” he starts, “is for this team. Everything I do is for the Ocelots. Aren’t you glad we won, Lukas? If it weren’t for me, we would’ve lost to the likes of them . All that hard work preparing would have gone to waste.”
“And what about their work?” Lukas argues. “We’re not the only team who’s worked hard all year for this competition. What you did was wrong, Aiden. We might be the reigning team, but we’re not cheats.”
“Wait, let me get this right.” Gill points at Aiden. “ You were the reason their build burnt down?”
“He broke the stone protecting the lava,” Lukas says flatly. “I saw him do it.”
Aiden draws his lips back into a sneer. “Oh, haha, put all the blame on me,” he snipes. Rounding again on Lukas, he continues, “If you saw me breaking that stone, why didn’t you stop me then? Hm?”
Lukas’ mouth falls open a little. He closes it quickly, and glances away. He hadn’t done anything, even though he’d seen what Aiden was doing. He hadn’t even gone over to help punch out the fire. Guilt seeps into him before he can stop it. No , he hisses. No, it’s not your fault.
Is it his fault? Is it?
“I’m not the one who broke the stone,” Lukas defends himself regardless. “That was still you , Aiden.”
Aiden places his hands on his hips. “But you’re just as accountable,” he replies, tone cool. “You’re as much to blame for this as I am, ‘cause you didn’t stop me. The same way you don’t stop me from putting those idiots in their place, even though they deserve it. The same way you don’t stop Gill ‘n Maya from doing the same thing.”
“I-” Lukas cringes, shoulders raised high. “I don’t condone it,” he says in a low voice. “You guys all know how I feel about that.”
Gill frowns. “Aiden’s right, though,” he starts. “You don’t try to stop us. Not really. I honestly thought you were, I dunno. Pretending you couldn’t hear.”
“Exactly!” Aiden nods. “You were enabling us, Lukas. You never tried to actually stop us.”
Lukas exhales sharply. “No! I talked to you guys, remember? Every time it happens - I steer you three away, try remind you why we’re building in the first place.”
“Oh, was that what you were doing?” Aiden chuckles, and rolls his eyes. “Just admit it, Lukas - you don’t like those Dead Ends either.”
“I never said that,” Lukas retorts. “I want our team to win, obviously. I never said anything about hating them-”
“But it’s only natural, they’re our rivals,” Maya interrupts. She shakes her head and places her hands on Lukas’ shoulders. “It’s okay, man. You don’t have to be nice to them if you don’t like them.”
“Wh- no - guys, stop putting words in my mouth.” Lukas tilts to one side, not quite pushing Maya’s hands off but at the same time not entirely comfortable. “Think about it - what if it had been them to do that to us? It’s not right - it’s not moral - we’re here to build, to create.” Lukas clenches his fists. “Not to destroy.”
“Ugh, spare us the spiel.” Aiden rolls his eyes. “You’ve always been too soft, Lou, even to our enemies. And you know what? That’s not my flaw. That’s yours .”
Lukas’ mouth falls open again. Only slightly, but Aiden still notices. He grins, lifting his head high.
“Some leader you are,” he scoffs. “What kind of leader would put the wellbeing of the enemy over their own people?” He shakes his head. “You know - if you weren’t so damn good at building, at having your little friend get you all that rare stuff - maybe..” Aiden trails off, and snorts, but does not finish that sentence. Lukas snaps his head up, his stomach twisting into knots.
Gill notices. “All of us are good at something,” he declares, looking between the four of them. “It takes all of us to make this team. And frankly, I prefer having Lukas as leader. Even if you’ve got some things to work through.” He glances at Aiden, then back at Lukas. “You always try to see the good in others, Lukas. But sometimes you’ve gotta admit - a pile of dirt’s still a pile of dirt, even if you fill it up with diamonds.”
Lukas lowers his head. “There’s nothing wrong about wanting to see the best in people,” he whispers.
“Until it makes you soft,” Aiden shoots back. “Until it makes you weak .”
Lukas grits his teeth. “I am not weak,” he spits.
Maya’s hands slip off his shoulders. “I’m sure Aiden didn’t mean it like that,” she reasons, glancing at him quickly. “Just - Lukas, what Aiden did was for the best. What kind of reputation would that leave us, making the coolest thing Endercon’s ever seen only for it to be beat by the likes of - of - whatever they were building?”
“If you really wanted to, you could’ve stopped me,” Aiden reaffirms, patting a hand over his chest. “But you didn’t, Lou. So don’t go pointing any more fingers at me.”
Lukas sighs, eyes staring at nothing. I could’ve stopped it , he thinks hollowly. I could have. I didn’t.
Lukas steps back. “Y’know what, guys?” He draws in a breath - deep, defeated. “You guys go on ahead to the convention. Have some fun.” He shakes his head. “I need some time to think.”
Aiden, Gill and Maya look at each other. “Yeah?” Maya asks, smiling. Hopeful.
Lukas nods, rubbing his eyes. They’re bleak, for some reason, as if he’s been crying for hours. “I’ll find you guys later,” he promises, the words wretched in his throat. “I’ll catch up.”
Aiden pats Gill and Maya on the backs at the same time. “You heard the man,” he jeers, turning around. “Let’s head on over to Endercon.” He begins leading them away, but turns his head back once more, leering at Lukas. “Hope you have a real good think about it,” he calls. “Don’t forget why we’re builders in the first place.”
Lukas had said that first to Aiden. He clenches his fists, watching the others walk away.
💧
Lukas sits under a tree, hugging his legs to his chest. He looks pathetic like this - he knows , but he can’t help himself. He stares off at the sky, though not really taking it in as he rests his chin on top of his knees.
Is it really his fault, too? He can’t help but shake the feeling that it is. Aiden had been the one to cause that lava to flow. But Lukas had been the only one to see him doing it - the more the recalls the moment, the more sure he is that Gill and Maya and the crowds had their backs turned at the time. How contorted Aiden’s expression had been. How seriously twisted does he have to be to destroy another team’s build like that? How jealous? It’s not like he’s lacking any recognition at all - the Ocelots have still won, after all these years. Lukas hates to think what lengths Aiden would go to, just to keep their team in the spotlight.
What kind of leader would put the wellbeing of the enemy over their own people? Is that what he’s been doing? Surely not. It’s competitive building - Lukas has never been one to go easy on opponents when it comes to building. It’s his strong suit. It’s what he’s good at. But the other teams are people too - people with the same goals, the same passion - they’re not any less human just because they’re not in the same boat as he is. Does Aiden really think he’s soft on the enemy? Since when has Lukas ever been soft when it comes to this competition? If you weren’t so damn good at building, at having your little friend get you all that rare stuff.. What had he meant by that? Was Aiden only keeping Lukas around because - because he’s useful? Is that it? No. No. Surely not. Him and Aiden have been friends for years - sure, they have disputes like this. But Aiden wouldn’t really mean him harm. Surely not.
Gill and Maya had backed him up too. They’d both looked so concerned for Lukas, as if there were something wrong with him - is there something wrong with him? Maybe it is his fault, then, if the others are agreeing with Aiden. Maybe he does need to work on himself, or whatever. Why else would they agree with him? Why else would they even care to tell it to his face? Lukas thinks back to the building. Aiden, face split open with rage. Everything I do is for this team. Everything I do is for the Ocelots. Everything Lukas does is for them, too. The other Ocelots are his friends . They care about him enough to stick around all this time. They wouldn’t hurt him. Not on purpose.
But the twisting in his stomach is still there, more painful than ever. Lukas touches one side of his face, exhaling gently.
Aiden, storming off all those years ago, practically ripping the ocelot jacket off his shoulders. This could’ve been another good victory. But you had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you? What if something had happened to him then? Would it have been Lukas’ fault?
Aiden, expression dark as he punched the practice dummy. I want to win. Of course I want to. I’ve worked so hard all these years - it’d be a waste of my time and skills if some nobodies won against me. Against us . Would it really be so bad if the Ocelots lost, for a change? Would Aiden really hold a grudge against anyone who bested them? Is Lukas apathetic - selfish - if he were to let anything cause the Ocelots a loss?
Aiden, squaring up to Lukas every combat session. Laughing as he falls back. Would be helpful if you were stronger. You’ve really gotta step it up. You can’t have an underling like me be stronger than you. Physical strength isn’t everything. Right? It takes more than just punches and kicks to be a strong person, a strong leader, even if Lukas is lacking in that department.
Aiden, totally indifferent as Lukas bled into his jacket. You’re saying I actually cut you? I didn’t hit you that hard, okay? You can’t seriously be bleeding over something like this. He hadn’t even been the one bleeding. He hadn’t even cared.
A new notion hits him. Are we even friends?
Lukas slaps his hand over his eyes.
Nonsense. Of course they’re friends - they’ve spent years together. All those walks out on sunny days. All that time playing spleef. All that time innovating, planning, creating - all for the highlight of their year, the Endercon building competition. That beautiful evening when Maya made three of them flower crowns and Lukas told them about himself. Why would these three people waste so much of their time to be with him if they didn’t see him as a friend? Why would Lukas bother reciprocating if he didn’t see them as his friends? His closest friends - his only friends? His-
Gill and Maya’s faces when Lukas confronted Aiden. Had they been sympathetic? Had they been disgusted? They had agreed with Aiden over him - so they’re seeing a fault in him too. You don’t try to stop us , Gill had said. I’m sure Aiden didn’t mean it like that , Maya had said. Defending Aiden. Is Lukas really in the wrong? Why would they side with Aiden if Lukas wasn’t wrong?
If you really wanted to, you could’ve stopped me , Aiden had said. But you didn’t, Lou. So don’t go pointing any more fingers at me.
Is it really his fault too? Is it Lukas’ fault for letting Aiden in to begin with, to fix up his fountain? No - Lukas had put trust in Aiden, trust that he would do what’s right no matter what, rather than let glory get to his head. He recalls it again. The contortion on Aiden’s face. The pure hatred as he smashed that stone block to bits.
Lukas takes his hand away from his face.
Maybe I need some new friends , he thinks. Maybe it’s time to call it quits.
Even so, something in him turns to ash at the mere thought.
He sits under the tree, until the sun has fully vanished from the horizon, before he gets up and makes the quiet walk towards Endercon.
💧
It’s busy here tonight. Lukas shifts through the crowds of convention-goers, ignoring the chatter, ignoring the vendors. Ignoring the rainbow beacon the Ocelots had made that very afternoon. He shoulders right past it as people stare in awe, not sparing it a second glance.
He’s not sure where the others are. Aiden and Gill both tend to stray towards poster stalls, purchasing a couple to put up around the house. Maya usually looks for food and entertainment. But tonight Lukas finds his friends in none of these usual places. He doesn’t worry, though. He doesn’t really try too hard. He’s not sure how much he wants to see them right now. So he finds a quiet place to stand, staring off into the distance as other people enjoy their evening, not paying much attention to anything. Not even to himself.
“‘Sup?”
Lukas startles a little as someone approaches him. With a jolt he realizes it’s Jesse - Jesse from the Dead Enders - though they don’t look angry right now, just curious.
“‘Sup?” Lukas repeats, straightening up.
“Nothing,” Jesse replies, “‘sup with you?”
“Nothing, ‘sup with you?” Lukas cringes when he realizes he’s said the same thing as them. Again.
Jesse’s brow furrows. “I just said - nothing.”
Lukas purses his lips. He brings a hand to the back of his neck with a sigh, and says to them, “Sorry you guys didn’t win this year. It might have turned out pretty cool, if it hadn’t - you know, burned down or whatever.” If I hadn’t froze when Aiden set that lava loose , he thinks, bitterly.
Jesse’s eyes narrow. “You know, that stunt your friend pulled really hurt my pig,” they snarl, icy.
Lukas holds up his hands. Damn it. He should’ve stopped Aiden. Why didn’t he stop Aiden? And stupidly, he replies, far too defensively, “Okay, maybe, but I had nothing to do with that.” Not directly. Aiden had been the one to pull said stunt. Lukas had only stood to the side and stared.
“He’s still missing, you know,” Jesse continues.
Lukas almost flinches. “Sorry. I hope you find him soon.”
Jesse raises an eyebrow, then lowers it. They sigh, and ruffle their hair, soft and curled at the edges. “Hey, you didn't happen to see a creepy guy with long hair and a beard roaming around, did you?” they ask, chewing on their lip.
Lukas squints. “No, I just got here,” he tells them. “Why..?”
Jesse drops their hand. “He scammed Petra out of a diamond earlier.”
This time Lukas actually recoils. “Woah,” he exclaims. “Everyone knows you don’t mess with Petra. Not if you know what’s good for you.” He glances from side to side. “I’ll keep a eye out, okay?”
Jesse nods. “Thanks, I’d appreciate that.”
Lukas smiles. “So, uh,” he laughs, voice trembling, “we’re cool?”
Jesse narrows their eyes again, though this time not unpleasantly. “Yeah,” they say tentatively, “we’re cool.”
Lukas nods, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “Cool, cool.”
Jesse’s lips tug. “Cool-i-o.”
“Coolness,” Lukas says.
Jesse laughs, a proper smile appearing on their face. “Ha! See you later, Lukas.”
“Yeah,” Lukas calls after them. “See ya.”
He watches them head off, hands on their hips. Lukas takes the opportunity to glance around the area, blowing out a breath. He should probably stop loitering and have some fun instead. He still needs to get that keynote ticket off Maya - the others had left before he remembered to ask. Lukas pushes himself off the post he’d been leaning against, and wanders through the convention stalls.
Where are the others? He’s keeping an eye out for them still, regardless of how he feels. He passes booths selling food, merch, and even slime balls - at which he stops to get just one - but either Lukas isn’t looking hard enough, or he’s already passed them several times and paid them no mind. No. He would at least have noticed if he saw the other Ocelots.
Lukas settles again near the entrance to the keynote, staring off into the distance. Other people and their friends laugh and talk together. Sharing finds. Trading purchases. This must be the first time since before the Ocelots that Lukas has been alone this long at Endercon. He’s not sure if the fact makes him feel more relieved, or more lonely.
He contents himself to tossing his slime ball into the air, catching it, repeating. He wonders if Aiden or Maya or Gill have found the slime booth yet. Lukas had the option to take another, but declined. If it were any of the others, they’d all have taken two slime balls. Lukas smiles wryly. He can already picture Aiden scoffing at him. What? Come on, Lou, why just one? he’d say. If they’re gonna offer two, you might as well take both.
“Hey, uh, Lukas?”
Lukas turns. It’s Jesse again, Axel, Olivia and Petra in tow - oh, they’ve found their pig, too, that’s a relief. He gives them a smile.
“Can you do me a favour?” Jesse asks, copying his smile.
Lukas glances between the four of them. “Anything’s possible,” he says, tentatively. After what Aiden did, I owe them this.
Jesse gestures at Lukas’ hands. “I need slime balls,” they state, straight to the point. “I swear I have a really good explanation-”
Lukas is already pushing it into their hand. “Whatever you guys are doing,” he interrupts, “count me in.” He looks at Petra, who grins. If she’s here, then maybe it’s about that scam from earlier. He’s happy to help out a friend. Besides. Not like he has much else to do, anyway.
“Thanks, Lukas.” Petra elbows Jesse. “Told you he was useful.”
“Aw, man,” Axel laughs, “this guy isn’t actually cool, is he?”
Olivia’s eyes narrow. “Remains to be seen.”
Lukas scowls, his smile slipping. I’m trying to help, aren’t I? He looks away, just as Jesse speedwalks over to the nearest crafting table.
“I gotta say,” Lukas muses, looking up at Axel. “You guys have got good chemistry.”
Axel, arms folded, raises an eyebrow. “You jealous?”
“I’m just saying,” Lukas replies evenly. “I think it’s cool you have a team that works so well together.” Wish it were as easy to talk to Aiden sometimes , comes the thought from the back of his head.
“You’re totally jealous.” Axel smirks, seeing whatever Lukas is wearing on his face, and turns towards Jesse. “How’s it going, Jesse?”
The next three minutes is single-handedly the most interesting thing that’s happened today. Lukas watches Jesse place the freshly-made slime block down and leap up to break a nearby chicken machine. The birds spill out of the broken glass and it’s mayhem after that. Somewhere between the keynote usher screaming his lungs out and the chicken machine owner falling to his knees, Petra pulls Lukas along and into the stage room with the rest of them. Weirdly, as he catches his breath, he thinks: I could’ve gotten in without all that trouble if I’d brought my ticket.
“What do we do once we catch that guy?” Lukas whispers, as the group of them slip backstage. “There are a million ways to play this. But-” He holds up his hands. “-considering this isn’t my fight, I’ll follow your lead.
Jesse smiles wryly, and cracks their knuckles. “Whatever we have to,” they reply, voice low.
Lukas stifles a laugh. “You’re way more intense than I gave you credit for, Jesse,” he remarks, their cold expression from earlier today coming back to him as he heads down the stairs.
The room below is dark, dingy, only lit by the occasional torch here and there. Bookshelves are stacked in neat lines across the room. It smells of must and sugar - the smell of old books and brewing potions.
“I don’t see him anywhere..” Jesse trails off. “Huh. Looks like this used to be the basement. Weird place to hide out.”
“I bet you anything I'll find my Wither skull here,” Petra growls.
Lukas does a double take. A Wither skull? Petra had only wanted a diamond in exchange for that?
“Let’s take a look around,” Jesse urges, stepping out of their hiding spot. “Shout if you guys find anything.”
The others spread out. Lukas glances around at them, and heads towards a bookshelf. These guys seem okay , he thinks, examining the volumes. They’ve taken him in, even if it had been on a whim. He thinks back to before. Can you do me a favour? I need slime balls. Lukas’ expression shifts. Told you he was useful. Is that all he is? Maybe he’s just here because of that. Because he was useful to their team, not because they actually want him here. He glances back towards the stairs. He thinks, for a moment, very seriously about leaving. Like he’d said - this isn’t his fight. This isn’t his problem . And he should go looking for the other Ocelots. Maybe they’ve gone looking for him, too.
Lukas turns back towards the bookshelf. Maybe I’ll stick around for a bit longer , he decides. Just in case. If this guy they’re searching for is dangerous, then perhaps it’s better if he stays. Better to have more people, in case something happens. Lukas will have their back. They’ll surely have his too, right?
💧
Lukas doesn’t know how long he’s been folded into the chest. He can still hear the iron golem clanging around, its footfalls heavy, with no way of telling how far or close it could be to him. He can’t hear the others. They must have left. Of course. Of course they left. They’ve probably forgotten about him entirely. It’s fine , Lukas tries to assure himself. It’s fine. They’re not really my friends. I’m not really theirs.
He hugs himself, letting out a shaky breath. Would Aiden have come back for me, if it were him? Would Maya? Would Gill? No use ruminating. He has to think, quickly, before he ends up spending the entire night here. With Ivor out there, with that Wither he plans to build - it’s going to get dangerous, fast, so he needs to get out, faster.
There’s a new set of footfalls. Lukas perks, biting into his lower lip. Is that Ivor? Maybe the man had come back, to check if the intruders are still in his basement. Either way, it can’t be the iron golem, those footsteps are far too soft to be mob-like.
“Lukas?”
Lukas goes still.
“Can you hear me, even though I’m whispering?”
Lukas shifts, and pushes the lid of the chest open. “Jesse?” he hisses. “Is that you whispering super loudly?”
Jesse whips their head around. “Lukas!” They gesture. “Over here!”
Lukas beams, relief pouring into him. You came back , he wants to say. Then, Why did you come back? I’m not your friend or anything.
The iron golem lurks over Jesse’s shoulder. Lukas gasps and sinks back into the chest.
He hears a struggle breaking out. Lukas’ breath catches in his throat. Jesse. They came back for him - and Reuben, their pig - he was with them too - are they even armed? What if that golem hurts them, or worse-
Lukas peeks back out of the chest. “Hey!” he says - not quite a shout but not quite a whisper either. The golem swivels around to look, but Lukas is already back in the chest.
“Hey, over here!” Something outside shatters - a bottle? A potion? More footsteps, faster this time, and then Jesse’s voice again: “Lukas, I’ve got it distracted. Get out while you can!”
Lukas slowly lifts the chest open again. The golem is on the other side of the room, hunkering after Jesse, Reuben at its heels. He sucks in a deep breath. Here goes nothing. With one quick motion he flings open the chest and rolls out. He winces, scrambling to his feet, almost buckling from how cramped they are. Still, he dives towards the stairwell, heart pounding in his ears.
“Okay, Jesse, come on!” he calls to them. Jesse ducks a blow from the golem and sprints over, Reuben in tow. They’re panting, just a little, and gesture up at the stairs.
It hits him again. Jesse came back for me. Lukas laughs, a hand fumbling over his heart. Why?
“Thanks for coming back for me,” Lukas wheezes anyway, hauling himself up the steps. “I didn’t know if anyone was going to-”
“No man left behind,” Jesse interrupts with a wave of their hand. “That’s my motto.”
Lukas turns his face slightly, so that Jesse can just about see him smiling. “Guess I owe you one,” he says, shyly, genuinely. The smile Jesse gives him right back is warm, a stark contrast from the iciness at the building competition, and Lukas starts to notice how soft their features are overall. Soft eyes. Soft skin. Soft hair. Something cracks within him, and for just a moment, Lukas forgets where he is and the world falls apart.
💧
He’s not wrong, though. The world does fall apart, in matter of minutes.
Smoke and screams and buildings coming undone. People pushing to get over each other, to run from the Wither - thing - consuming, growing larger, larger than the sky.
Lukas runs with Jesse and their group. He almost trips over himself several times, eyes not focused on up ahead but rather around him. Where are the others? he thinks in a panic. Where’s Aiden? Maya, Gill- Because after all this time he still hasn’t seen them. Not even a wink. He swallows his fear, or tries to at least, and forces himself to run faster - faster towards Gabriel’s stronghold. Don’t look. Don’t look. Still overhead he sees the swelling purple tractor beams, sucking up blocks buildings people - no, what if the others have already been pulled up there? Aiden, Maya, Gill - what if they’re already up there, they could be dead - dead or worse, by the looks of things-
Lukas catches himself at the portal - how long has he been mindlessly running for? He turns, staring at the dark purple tentacles snaking into the chamber. Gabriel suspended in a tractor beam. Petra suspended in a tractor beam. Jesse’s running towards them both - what does he do? What does he do?
Move! he screams at himself. Go help them!
What if that Wither did this to Aiden too? To Maya, to Gill-
How many more people are going to succumb to this thing? How many-
“Lukas!” Jesse shouts. “Lukas, give me a hand!”
For a second Gabriel and Petra shift. For a second it’s Maya and Gill suspended in the beams instead. The Ocelots. He should’ve gone looking for them. What if they’re dead - all of them - what if they’re dead because he didn’t go searching like he promised? What if they’re gone? Aiden’s words come back in a rush of hot air. Some leader you are.
Jesse grabs Petra by the leg and hauls her downwards. “I’ve got you!”
Petra. Petra. No. He should’ve-
“Thanks, Jesse!” Petra pants, collapsing to the floor. “Gabriel - he’s still up there-”
“Go, Jesse!” Gabriel shouts. “Go!”
“No!” Jesse throws themself back at him. One second they’re slashing their stone sword. Brave , Lukas weeps. Braver than me.
The next Jesse is crashing into Lukas, and both of them fall through the portal and into the blistering heat of the Nether.
No. No. Lukas jolts to his feet, eyes darting around, but Petra is nowhere to be seen. Not her, not Gabriel. No. His legs are giving way. He leans against the portal, too close to collapsing.
Reuben is sniffing at Jesse. Someone else steps forwards - Axel. Axel’s here. “Where's Petra?” he asks, hands wrung.
Jesse is still panting. Lukas gulps, shaking, and answers for them: “We did everything we could.”
Axel swivels around. “What are you saying?”
Olivia - Olivia’s here too - she glances at Jesse. “Jesse? What is he talking about?”
Jesse hauls themself to their feet, face pale. Please don’t tell them , Lukas begs. Please don’t tell them I choked.
And they don’t. Jesse shakes their head viciously, stuttering out, “It was chaos. There wasn't much we could do.” They’re shaking, shaking too. “Petra is still up there,” they breathe.
Shame pours into Lukas. “I got scared,” he confesses, the words falling from his lips. “Just for a second.” Just for a second, but it had still been a second too long.
Axel’s eyes bulge. “You got scared?” He marches closer, and for the first time in his life Lukas notices how tall Axel is, how large his fists are. How easily he could break someone’s ribs, if he so wanted to.
Lukas feebly waves his hands. “It wasn't my fault,” he protests, but even he knows it’s a lie.
Axel bares his teeth. “You got scared and it’s not your fault?” he snarls.
Lukas flinches. “No,” he breathes. “I-” What are you gonna do if someone, someday, threatens you with iron or gold or even diamond? ‘Cause I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass. And now Aiden might not be here at all. “I-”
“Back off, Axel,” Olivia snaps. “You saw what it was like in there.”
Axel glares at Lukas but turns around. “We gotta go back,” he declares.
“Are you crazy? Think about what you're walking into, Axel-”
The group of them bicker. None of it goes into Lukas’ head. In one ear and out the other. He stares, barely feeling anything, barely noticing when Ivor of all people tumbles through the portal, barely reacting when the Witherstorm, Ivor had called it - when it breaks the portal to bits. Barely there at all. He only looks up a little as Ivor tells them, scoffing, that Petra had been running away from the portal. And it comes back to him in a bolt. Petra - suspended in the beam. Jesse dragging her free. Lukas is supposed to have her back - she’s covered him so many times, and this - he had frozen , frozen, and now she might be dead, and Gabriel might be dead, and the other Ocelots might be dead too-
Why didn’t he move?
Why didn’t he do anything?
Some leader you are , Aiden’s voice whispers.
Some leader he is, indeed.
💧
One hot and bumpy minecart ride later, the five of them emerge through the exit portal and onto solid land. The temple Gabriel had been herding them to is nowhere in sight, and neither is the Witherstorm, but it’s already dark. Jesse decides on Olivia’s idea for shelter and soon the four of them are gathering wood to build a treehouse. Lukas notices that he’s still shaking, mind still racing so fast that he can’t keep track of any of the thoughts. He does his best to help, digging out from memory the few treehouse designs he’s made, and even though the thing doesn’t look as good as it could Lukas finds the squeezing in his chest to be more bearable now. Manageable. Is taking the time to build something, no matter how amateur, really how he best calms down? He’s grateful for the calm, either way, even if some part of him still gnaws at the prospect of finding the others.
Lukas hugs his arms around his stomach. If only there were something to eat right now. He’s famished. He hadn’t thought to bring extra food with him when he’d first set out for the competition, assuming he’d be safely home by now. What a turn of events , he thinks bitterly, fingers digging into his ribs.
Axel is rummaging through his pockets, his back facing the others. “Awh, man.”
Olivia looks up bleakly. “What?”
Axel turns around, grinning. “I’m going to tell you something, but you have to promise not to freak out.”
Jesse blinks, just as wearily. “What is it?”
Axel holds out a palm, and unwraps the fabric in it. “I have cookies! One for me.” He walks over to each of them, respectively: “One for Olivia, one for Jesse.”
“Thanks, Axel,” says Jesse.
Lukas doesn’t look up. He knows where this is going, anyway.
“And one for Reuben.” Axel drops the last cookie in front of the pig, glancing up at Lukas, emotionless. “Sorry Lukas, I only have four.”
He doesn’t sound sorry at all. Lukas shrugs, lips quirking slightly. “Oh, no, it's - it’s alright,” he replies, trying to laugh it off. “I’m not that hungry anyway. I’ll..” His stomach growls. Lukas grimaces. “I’ll grab something in the morning.” He closes his eyes, tilting his head into the wall. Fatigue creeps up on him. It’s certainly been a day.
“Here.”
Lukas opens his eyes. Jesse is standing over him, hand extended. They’re holding out their cookie. With a jolt, Lukas realizes that they’re offering it to him .
“Oh, no.” Lukas waves a hand around. “No. I - I can't do that.” They need to eat too. They can’t just give it to me .
Jesse sets their jaw. “I insist ,” they say, pushing the cookie into his hands. Lukas stares at it, not knowing what to do.
His stomach growls again. Lukas shakes himself, patting his burning cheek. He brings the cookie close to his mouth, and whispers, “Thanks, Jesse.”
He nibbles on it. It’s chocolate chip, the dough soft and buttery. Lukas’ heart swells. They didn’t have to do that for him. He’s not really their friend - any of the others’ friend.
Axel glares at Jesse as they sit back down. “That was for you,” he says angrily. “Not him .”
Jesse shrugs. “I can share with Reuben,” they reply, picking up Reuben’s cookie with a frown. “I’m not sure if he’s supposed to be eating chocolate anyway. Here, boy - give me a sec to pick off the chips, and you can have the rest, how’s that sound?”
Lukas dusts the cookie crumbs off his hands. He watches as Jesse drops the chocolate chunks onto their lap before passing Reuben the picked cookie. He watches as they pop the chunks into their mouth, chewing. This is who Aiden was so worked up about? Lukas can’t help but think it. If Jesse had been the one stuck with the Ocelots in a situation like this, if they’d been the odd one out - Lukas can’t imagine Aiden nor Maya nor Gill being as kind. They would’ve laughed in Jesse’s face and made them watch in hunger. Lukas smiles a little, warmth filtering into him from the gesture. They didn’t have to do that. It’s not like I’m a part of their group.
“Hey, Lukas.” Lukas looks up as Olivia nods at him. “If you had to, which would you rather fight: a hundred chicken-sized zombies, or ten zombie-sized chickens?”
Jesse’s lips twitch upwards. “Choose wisely.”
Lukas laughs. “Would you rather, huh? That’s a good one,” he says. “Let me think.”
Axel gets to his feet, lips flat against each other. “How can you guys joke at a time like this? Petra is still out there.” He side-eyes Lukas as he continues in the same stony tone, “She’s all by herself. There’s nothing funny about that.”
Petra - suspended in the tractor beam. Lukas, unmoving. Guilt shoots through him like an arrow.
“Petra wouldn't mind at all,” Jesse points out. “She’d want us to keep our spirits up.”
Axel purses his lips. “If I were her, I’d..” He sighs. “I dunno. It feels wrong.”
I should help them, then. If he’s going to stay here with the Dead Enders, he might as well make himself useful. Lukas pushes himself to his feet. “In that case, we should get some rest,” he suggests. “After all, we gotta start looking for this temple as early as we can. Now-” He paces, hand on his chin. “-my guess is, if we start at the portal and kind of split up-”
“Woah, what are you doing?” Axel crosses his arms, lips pulled back into a sneer. Lukas looks at him, at the way he’s scowling, and then he’s scowling too.
“Did I do something to you?” he inquires, turning so he’s fully facing Axel. “I’d really like to know, because you keep getting on my case for what seems like no reason.”
“Guys,” Jesse sighs, before Axel can even open his mouth. “We’ll figure it out in the morning. Let’s just get some rest right now.”
Lukas’ shoulders droop, the scowl falling from his lips. “Maybe you're right. I am pretty exhausted.”
“Jesse means ‘us’,” Axel spits, “not you.”
“Axel.” Jesse gives him a look. “Like I said. We’ll figure it out in the morning.”
Axel ignores them, and strides a few steps forwards. “You're the only one wearing that stupid jacket,” he snaps at Lukas. “Don't tell us what to do.”
Aiden asking for the ocelot face recipe. Aiden fixing the rip. Aiden bringing back three new jackets - one for each of the team, except their leader.
Lukas clenches his jaw. “Take. That. Back.”
“Can’t.” Axel tosses his scarf over his shoulder, blasé. “Wouldn’t.”
Petra in the tractor beam. The other Ocelots maybe dead. Anger rises in Lukas hot and fast, so much so that it startles him, to feel so much at once.
“You know what?” he seethes, a growl low in the back of his throat. “I get to wear this jacket because I know how to build. But that doesn't mean I don't know how to break things.”
“Your threats don’t scare me,” Axel scoffs, rolling his eyes. “Not anymore, now that we know how you really are.”
Lukas opens his mouth to say something else, but Jesse beats him. “Drop it,” they snap. “This is ridiculous, guys. Just drop it.”
Axel redirects his glare towards his friend. “Don’t be like that, Jesse,” he retorts. “First you give him your cookie, now this? Come on.” He glares again at Lukas. “Haven't you done enough damage for one day? Petra might be dead because of you.”
Petra in the beam. His Ocelots, maybe in the beam. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe dead. Lukas looks away, gnashing his teeth.
Oliva gets to her feet. “You’re taking this too far, Axel,” she scolds him.
Is he? Maybe Axel’s right. After the way Aiden and Gill and Maya treated these three - even if Lukas never joined in on it himself - they’ve got a right to hate him. Even if he stood to the side, silent. In fact, that makes him even guiltier. I honestly thought you were pretending you couldn’t hear. You were enabling us. You never tried to actually stop us.
No wonder Axel’s been making all this fuss. They don’t want him here.
Lukas shakes his head. “I don’t have to take this.” He’s had enough grief for one day. “Listen.. why don’t I just leave and let you guys hash this out?”
Olivia spins around. “You can’t leave,” she exclaims. “It’s dangerous out there-”
“I can take care of myself,” Lukas cuts her off, folding his arms. “It’s what Axel wants, right?” he adds, bitter, stung.
Axel only rolls his eyes, planting himself back into his corner of the treehouse. “Let him leave if he wants to leave,” he scoffs. “It’s not like you’ve been useful so far-”
“Stop it, Axel,” Jesse orders. They turn towards Lukas, eyes a mix of ice and fire. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“But Jesse-” Axel protests.
“That's enough,” they snap. “We're all on the same team now. He's staying.”
Lukas blinks at Jesse, then sits hesitantly down again. At least Jesse wants me here, he thinks, surprised at how relieved he’s feeling. Do they want me here? Surely, right? If they didn’t they wouldn’t have said that just now. Do they really want me here?
Lukas’ stomach growls again and he frowns. The cookie had helped, emotionally more than anything, but it had barely been enough.
“Zombie-sized chickens,” Lukas says, after an uncomfortable silence between the five of them. “That’s what I’d fight.”
“Oh yeah?” Olivia raises an eyebrow. “Why’s that?”
Lukas grimaces. “‘Cause,” he mumbles, “I’m starving.”
As if it couldn’t get any worse, rain begins to pour down upon their open roof.
💧
Lukas’ dreams aren’t clear. A withered, toxic purple surrounds him on all sides, snaking around him like smoke. He can’t make out the details, but at some point the Ocelots appear. Aiden, Gill and Maya - all withered, skin blackened, rotting like half-eaten fruit.
Lukas wakes in the night, breathing hard. Cold, and not just from the rain.
💧
Jesse approaches him the next morning, when the five of them trek on towards the Order temple. They’ve got deep bags under their eyes, as if they too haven’t been able to sleep. “You doing okay?” they ask him, and before he can stop himself Lukas recoils.
Why do they care? It’s not like I’m not part of the group. But they’d stopped him from leaving last night. Maybe because they both know the danger that lurks in the twilight hours. Maybe because they really did mean it when they said they’re all on the same team. Surely I don’t belong here. Do they really think I belong here? Still, Lukas fumbles, averting his gaze as much as he can.
“It was a rough night,” he replies honestly. Because it had been. Not just Axel. Not just the rain and hunger.
Jesse purses their lips. “It happens,” they say. “We were all tired and..” They blow out a breath. “I'm just glad you're okay,” they finish.
They are? Lukas smiles a little, surprising himself into laughter. He allows himself the notion that maybe - maybe Jesse does just care about him. He’s not entirely sure he deserves it, what with their building teams’ rivalry and all. He’s searching their expression for any sign of contempt or disdain, expecting even a little thread of it, but finds none. And somehow, the thought is comforting.
“Thanks for being so cool about it,” he tells them, genuinely.
Jesse beams back. Lukas has seem them smile more in the last 24 hours than he has in the past ten years. They look beautiful when they smile. It’s soft, like every other part of their complexion. Complementary. “Cool beans,” they say with a thumbs-up, before heading off to check on the others.
They find the temple in time, and after some tinkering here and there Jesse fixes the map on the wall. The Order amulet, given to them by Gabriel, shines two beacons onto it: one red, the other green. Ellegaard the Engineer, in Redstonia; Magnus the Rogue, in Boomtown.
Lukas opts to stay at the temple. “In case Petra comes back,” he explains, as Jesse and Olivia prepare for Redstonia. And my friends , he adds privately. If they even know to head on this way.
Jesse pats him on the shoulder, the gesture either genuine or infantilizing. “Thanks, Lukas,” they say. “We’ll come back as soon as we can.”
Lukas nods. “I know. Just..” He stares into the distance. Even here, they can see the Witherstorm raging. “Please hurry,” he finishes, quiet.
Axel does not talk to him over the first few days. Lukas is glad for it - he doesn’t exactly want to talk to him either. What would they even talk about? Would Lukas apologize? Would Axel snark at him for trying? The pair of them take turns taking watch by the map, while the other heads out to find materials and scrounge for food. Lukas usually offers to head out first. Punching a tree, picking it clean of its apples - it gives him something to do. While he’s on watch all he does is stare and think and worry.
He thinks about the Ocelots, how he’d left them on - well, not bad terms, but not the best either. Are they dead? Are they alive? If the latter - what do they think of him right now? Would they think he’s abandoned them? Maybe he has - but it hadn’t been of his own volition, and, besides - Jesse’s team needs help too. Right now he needs to stay here, whether or not he thinks he should, because Jesse had been the one Gabriel gave the amulet to. Lukas hadn’t thought much of it before, given how quickly the events had passed, but he’s sure of this as much as he is sure in his building. Even if he’s unsure of how welcome he is, he needs to stay. Besides - he owes it to them to stay. After the way he’d let the other Ocelots treat them. After Jesse pulled him out of the stage basement. After he’d froze, his lack of action costing Petra time.
Petra. After four days she still hasn’t shown up, and though he doesn’t know him well Lukas can tell Axel is getting anxious, too. If only he had budged, even a little - maybe Petra would be with them rather than who-knows-where. It’s not the first time Lukas wishes he were brave, that he were strong - if even just a sliver of what Petra has. A sliver of what Jesse has. Of what Aiden has. Physical strength, combat - god, what an idiot. If Lukas had taken all those training sessions as seriously, and if he hadn’t hesitated, then maybe he could’ve helped pull Petra down. Or Gabriel. Or just helped Jesse at all. I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass. Lukas touches his right sleeve, where the scar hides underneath. If only you were , he finds himself thinking instead.
At midday on the fourth day, after Lukas returns from patching up the temple walls, Axel confronts him in front of the world map.
“Jess and Via are taking too long,” he begins, “so I’m going to Boomtown to get Magnus.”
Lukas blinks. “On your own?”
Axel rolls his eyes. “ Yes , on my own. You stay here and keep watch. Petra’s still not here.. but maybe she will be soon. I just don’t want her to get here and find out she’s alone.”
Lukas nods, and reaches into his pockets. “You should take some food,” he says, procuring the apples he’d picked that morning. “Boomtown’s closer to the temple than Redstonia, but it’ll still be a long journey.”
Axel takes the apples with a stiff nod. “Thanks, Lukas. Listen..” He sighs a little. “I know I was harsh that first night in the treehouse. I still don’t think it’s cool, that you were tryna boss us around like we’re your own gang, but I wanted to apologize on my part.” He scratches the back of his head. “I said some things that I regret. So, sorry about that ‘n all.”
Lukas doesn’t know what to say. He’s being apologized to? Even after all the grievances the Ocelots have dumped upon the Dead Enders? “No, no,” Lukas says, baffled. “If anything, I’m the one who should be apologizing.” He pauses, before going on, “You’re right. I shouldn’t have tried to - take things into my own hands. Not when I’m the one who doesn’t belong. And, Petra-”
Axel shakes his head. “Just be here for her when she gets here,” he says. “Okay?”
If she gets here at all , Lukas almost says. But he shoves the thought aside and nods. “I will,” he promises. “I will.”
Lukas watches as Axel leaves, propped up against the wall. The Witherstorm in the distance roars. Like thunder. Like bad things to come.
💧
Two days after Axel leaves, and six days after Jesse and Olivia, Petra staggers towards the temple.
Lukas doesn’t believe his eyes when he first sees her. “Petra?” he calls, and the moment he sees her smile up he bolts downstairs.
“Hey, Lukas!” Petra rasps, grinning as he stops short of hugging her. “Glad to see you in one piece.”
Lukas laughs out of shock. “I don’t believe it! You’re okay!”
Petra nods wearily. “Uh-huh. Things are wild out there. That Witherstorm’s growing bigger by the minute.”
Lukas shakes his head. “Come on,” he says. “Let me get you something to eat, you look tired.”
He shows her the way up, and helps her sit down on the wool block he’d picked up a few trips ago. It’s not quite a bed, but it’s good enough for now. Lukas hands her a couple slices of melon.
“You found us,” he states.
“Mmhm. Sure did. Took a hell of a time getting here, I must say. By the time I escaped Gabriel’s chamber, the portal was already destroyed.”
Lukas glances away, fingers twitching. “I’m sorry about that,” he blurts. “Back then, when we were trying to get away - I’m sorry I didn’t help you.”
“Eh.” Petra shrugs. “Don’t worry about it. It’s in the past now, no point dwelling.”
“‘No point dwelling’? Petra, I was right there.” Lukas rests his face on his propped-up knees. “I was right there, but I didn’t help you. I froze .”
Petra is talking over him before he’s even finished. “Uh, not sure if you noticed, but a big purple monster with tentacles the size of trees is pretty scary.” Petra rolls her eyes. “What I’m saying, Lukas, is that it was natural for you to be scared. It’s the most human reaction there is. Your response just so happened to be freeze, rather than fight or flight.”
Lukas heaves out a breath. “I’m glad Jesse helped you, at least,” he mumbles.
“Ah. Jesse .” Petra takes a big bite out of her melon slice, tossing the rind aside. “They’re pretty cool, y’know. I know, I know, they’re not as good a builder as you are. But between you and me? The dude’s pretty awesome. Kind as hell. They’re great company.”
Lukas lifts his head. The surprise from the competition filters back into him. “Have you known them for long?” he asks.
Petra laughs. “You kidding? We’ve known each other our whole lives. We haven’t talked that much in the past few years, ‘cause - y’know, I’ve been adventuring and all.” She smiles, the action soft. “You should get to know ‘em better. I think you’d make great friends.”
Lukas thinks back to the treehouse. How Jesse had given him their cookie. How they’d asked him to stay. Their smile the next day, brighter than the morning sun. The underlying trepidation that he can’t quite shake. “Yeah,” he replies hollowly. “They do seem pretty great.”
Petra sighs, shifting. “Whereabouts are they, anyway? You’re the only one here, but you don’t seem ..” She drifts off, eyebrows furrowed.
“Gabriel told them to reunite the Order,” Lukas explains. “Jesse and Olivia are in Redstonia, and Axel left just two days ago to get Magnus.”
“Ah. I see.” Petra nods. “Look at that. The power of friendship, at its finest.”
A thought occurs to Lukas. “Speaking of..” He pats down his hair a few times. “Have you seen the other Ocelots at all? I’ve been trying not to think about them.. I don’t know what I’d do with myself if they were - gone .” The last word comes out choked, and Lukas almost tears up. Almost. He sniffs inwards, hard, then looks back at Petra, daring to hope, for just a moment longer.
But when he looks at her she’s shaking her head. “Sorry, Lukas. I haven’t seen them.” She turns to him, sadness in her eyes. “If I had, I’d have told you straightaway.”
Lukas’ heart drops all the way down to the ground. “Oh,” he breathes. “I see.” He shrugs, slowly, unable to decide what he should say. But eventually he settles on, “I just hope they’re okay.”
Petra elbows him. “I’m sure they’re fine,” she assures him. “They’re a tough bunch. They’ll find a way to get through it, I’ll bet.”
Lukas isn’t sure he agrees. But still, he nods, hoping for all he’s worth that it’s true.
💧
But if they’re alive - would the other Ocelots even be thinking of him? How so? Would they be angry that he didn’t stick with them? Would they be worried that he’s gone in the first place? But even if they’re pissed at him, even if they hate him - he has to at least try to make things right. He can’t let that angry post-competition conversation be the last one he ever has with them - he refuses. Lukas tries to imagine what the three of them would say. Every time, he comes away with the image of them scowling in disgust, hurt, betrayal. Some leader you are. Yeah. Some leader he is.
Four days after his departure, Axel returns first with Magnus the Rogue in tow. Lukas, surprised, steps aside as he reunites with Petra, talking non-stop for at least an hour, as the sun overhead begins to set.
One full day later, Jesse and Olivia return with Ellegaard. The moment she sees Magnus her eyes bulge out of her skull. The moment Magnus sees her his features grow sharper, angrier. Lukas frowns as they bicker. Aren’t they supposed to be friends? He finds his mind drawn back to Aiden, back to how they used to bicker like that. If it could even be called bickering. Lukas has never been the type to start a fight for the hell of it. Maybe I’ll never get the chance to , he thinks, swallowing back the guilt.
They head out first thing in the morning to find Soren - the last member of the Order. Olivia and Ellegaard had pushed to go immediately but Jesse had ultimately made the call to rest up first. They definitely need it, if they want to last the whole trek to Soren’s mountain fortress. Lukas looks at Petra. She’s been pale ever since she’d gotten back - paler than usual - and as she slumps into a corner she actually looks relieved. A little wriggling something gnaws at Lukas. Petra suspended. Lukas frozen. He hopes she’ll be alright.
The journey is tedious. It doesn’t help that Ellegaard and Magnus are squabbling like petulant children every chance they get, as if the end of the world isn’t two steps away from them. Several times Lukas almost covers his ears. Just be quiet , he begs inside. Some of us don’t even have the luxury of arguing with their friends. If they’re meant to be two of the greatest heroes in the world, well - the world probably won’t have luck on their side for much longer.
At least Jesse’s stepping up. At whatever obstacle they’re all facing, they are the one leading from the front, even though it’s incredibly obvious that even they don’t know what they’re doing sometimes. Lukas wishes he could be like that. Not confident even when there’s no reason he should be, but leading. He’s not used to being the one on the side, given he’s led the Ocelots through years of sunshine and rain, but Jesse does a good job. Better, even. They lead their group through Soren’s fortress, even after Ellegaard and Magnus abandon them in the courtyard. They fight at the front when Ivor - that greasy bastard - slips into the library. They’re the one to start digging into the floor where Soren’s light points. They’re the one who leads them through the mob grinder, the loot chests, into the End portal chamber. And at the same time, checking up on everyone. Reuben. Axel. Olivia. Petra. Even Lukas. Smiling even through the worst of frustrations. And Lukas can’t help but think - do the Ocelots view him this way, too, when he leads their team onwards into victory? Or do they also feel that slight itch to take over, to pitch a suggestion or two even when they don’t need it? And then, even further - does Jesse consider him a part of the team to begin with? Surely. If they didn’t want him here they would have left him in the stage basement back at Endercon. If they didn’t want him here they would have let him leave the treehouse that night, would have forced him to leave, would have abandoned him well long ago. He knows this. He finds the worry wriggling through him all the same.
The six of them land into the End from the portal in Soren’s fortress. Axel lands on Lukas. He groans, pushing him off, and immediately covers his eyes.
Jesse frowns at him. “Lukas, are you hurt?” they ask.
“What? No, I’m not crying, just - look. Or, actually - don’t.”
Spindly Endermen are scattered across the moon-coloured stone, towering beyond the great obsidian pillars, their numbers reaching into the distance. Jesse hisses at the sight of them. “Hide!”
The group of them duck and shield their eyes. Lukas feels a laugh bubbling out of his throat. “So, uh.. what do we call that?” he manages, shoving the fear out of his voice. “A herd of Endermen? A flock of Endermen? A swarm?”
“A crap ton, that’s what,” Jesse replies.
“We might wanna hold off on the grammar lessons until later,” Olivia says. “Which way are we headed, Jesse?”
Jesse procures the Order amulet. The white light, indicating Soren, flickers and sputters before it dies completely. “Oh, great,” they mutter.
“Stuff like that doesn’t work in the Nether,” Petra muses, weakly, “so probably not the End, either.”
Lukas laughs dryly. “Great. So now we’re lost. First that death-machine grinder, then all those mobs, and now - all these Endermen.” He kicks at the ground. “ Great .”
Jesse tucks the amulet away again. “At least we’re alive and well,” they point out.
Lukas shrugs. “Yeah.”
Petra brushes her hair back with a wince. Lukas looks towards her. She’s getting even paler now, if that’s even possible. She’s been clutching onto her left arm for most of the past few days - it’s clearly paining her to move, let alone move that arm. Is she sick? Injured? He doesn’t want to ask, in case he comes off as accusatory, but he’s noticed her breathing louder, her movements slowed. In all the years Lukas has known her he’s never once seen her sick - could this be something to do with the Witherstorm? Petra, suspended in that beam - had it done something to her then, because he hadn’t moved fast enough to get her? Lukas pushes away the guilt-ridden idea. He so wants to bring it up with Jesse, in private, but neither of them have had time to be alone in the same place together. For now, he holds his tongue.
Jesse sighs. “We just have to keep on trucking ‘til we get to Soren.”
“Wait.” Axel points. “Is that-”
Soren, in the distance. Unarmoured and unarmed, and climbing a flight of wooden stairs. Lukas gapes.
“Where is he going?” Olivia exclaims.
“No idea, but we gotta go.” Petra clears her throat and stumbles forwards from the back of the group. “Everyone, follow me! I’ll get us to the other side - just stay behind me and we’ll-” She coughs violently into her elbow. “We’ll be fine,” she croaks.
Jesse shakes their head at her. “That’s not a good idea,” they whisper.
Lukas straightens. “Jesse’s right,” he says. Petra looks up at him from her coughing. Her eyes are dull and glassy and it pricks at him, the amount of pain she’s clearly in. Without a second thought, he offers, “In fact - how about I take the lead?” It’s the least he can do, what with his inaction thus far. Some leader you are , comes Aiden’s voice again. Some leader indeed.
Jesse snaps around to him, eyes wide. Lukas swallows and strides over to the front. And, just to be respectful, he turns to them and pleads, “Give me a chance. Just say the word, and I’ll do it.”
There is a brief pause before Jesse nods sharply and looks to the others. “Everyone, follow Lukas!” they call. “And let’s pick up the pace, okay?”
Something in him eases. “Thanks, Jesse,” Lukas says. I won’t let you down. The memory of Petra suspended in the tractor beam returns. Not again. “Come on!”
He leads them on towards the staircase - head bowed, gaze lowered, heart fluttering ever so slightly. All it took was him to ask. Had the Ocelots wanted to do something like this, too? To lead on even when Lukas had already assumed his usual role? His heart aches just to think about them. I wish I could talk to them again. Imagine how they’d react if they were here - standing in the End! Gill has always been the biggest fan of Gabriel, so he’d be ecstatic, already looking for where the mighty Warrior may have slain the Dragon. Maya would probably be mining into one of those obsidian pillars, arguing that they’d be saving time if they just took some here, and while they’re at it, why not some End stone too? And then, Aiden - Aiden would just be laughing. Laughing at their good fortune. And Lukas would be laughing too, seeing how happy they all are here. If only. If only.
They climb up the stairs. “Nice moves back there, Lukas!” Olivia pants, flashing him a smile.
Lukas returns the gesture. “Thanks!” It’s the least I could do.
Olivia falls in line beside him, hands curled tight over her hips. “You doing alright so far?” she inquires, blowing out a breath.
Lukas glances up at the steps ahead of them. There’s tons of them, stretching into the sky. “Well,” he laughs, “it’s certainly good exercise.”
“Ha. Definitely.” Then Olivia shakes her head. “But I was actually talking about this adventure in general, with the Witherstorm and everything. How are you holding up?”
Lukas goes stiff at the edges. “Ah, well..” He feigns a slight shrug. “You know - just.. trying to keep it together. Trying to step up where I can.” Neither of which are false. He does want to step up. He doesn’t want to fall apart.
“Yeah?” Olivia readjusts her goggles. “Well, I think you’re doing a good job, considering you’re new to the team and all.”
Lukas pats down the back of his neck. “Thanks for saying that,” he replies. “And thanks for keeping me around.”
“Mmh. Thanks for sticking around.” Olivia squints. “Axel told me he apologized, back at the temple.”
Lukas recalls the conversation. “Oh. Yeah, he did.”
“What he said wasn’t nice at all,” Olivia goes on. “I’m glad he saw past his grudges, though.”
Guilt hits him in a sharp pang. “I’m sorry about the Ocelots,” Lukas sighs. “I know it must be awkward having to work with me. Seeing how the others treated you guys..”
“Quite the opposite, actually,” Olivia says. Lukas’ eyebrows shoot upwards. “You’ve always been the nicest one out of your team. I appreciate trying to keep our relationship civil back then. But, now?” Olivia shrugs. “Now that I’ve spent some time with you, I’m starting to see you’re not so bad at all.”
Lukas’ eyes dart away. “Thanks. Same goes for you too, Olivia.”
“Mm.” Olivia wipes her hands on her front. “Sorry if I’ve ever come across as unpleasant. You’re actually pretty cool, Lukas. Smart.”
There it is again. An apology directed at him. And again, just like with Axel: Why are you apologizing to me? He’s got far more to apologize for than - well, than all of this new group combined. They’re all being so kind to him - why? He doesn’t deserve that kindness, does he? Not after everything.
Still, he’s surprised at how happy he feels. At how relieved. “Thank you,” Lukas says again. He pauses, then decides to compliment her: “Your redstone’s pretty good, actually, compared to mine. You could get to Ellegaard-level some day.”
Olivia laughs a little. “Real charmer, you,” she teases, before climbing past him up the stairs.
Lukas smiles at her as she does. These are the people Aiden was worked up about? Cold to begin with, sure. But kind. Kinder than the other Ocelots could ever give them credit for. Kinder than Lukas had ever thought possible, too. I don’t deserve them , he realizes. He doesn’t. And then, I wish the others were here to see just how wrong they are.
Lukas notices Jesse lingering near the back, talking quietly to Petra. She’s fallen behind by a fair bit, bent at the middle, moving as though to retch. She looks awful. Should I ask Jesse about it? He doesn’t get the chance to as Jesse strides through their number, stoic as they head to the front again. Maybe later.
Jesse is the first to reach the trapdoor at the top of the stairs, to climb the ladder, to see what lies ahead. They stand still, rigid, unmoving. Dread piles into Lukas’ stomach.
“What do you see?” Olivia calls, gripping the rungs of the ladder herself.
“I think I’m hallucinating,” Jesse replies slowly. Their voice grows fainter as they haul themself up. “It’s all wool!”
“What?” Olivia scrambles up the ladder, Axel following suit. Lukas waits until Axel has scooped Reuben into his arms before he climbs, squinting at the light pouring down as he surfaces, and looks around.
Wool. Jesse’s right. It’s all made of wool - the grass, the sky, god-forbid - even the trees and mobs. The swarming colour is a sharp, dramatic contrast to the gloomy purple of the End. It hurts Lukas’ eyes to look at any one place for too long. Soren built all this? Anger rises in Lukas in a rush of heat. Soren built all this?
He bends down and yanks off a part of the faux-grass. The light green fluff feels soft and mocking in his hand, leering up at him with an innocence that only makes him angrier. Soren built all this? Soren the Architect - the greatest builder to have ever lived - supposedly the one to have all the answers for defeating the Witherstorm. Lukas stares at the wool, fingers curling over its edges.
“You’re telling me,” he whispers, “we’ve been resting all our hopes on this guy and the - the whole time he’s been building some - totally artificial Happyland?”
“Well..” Axel shrugs. “It’s real wool.”
Lukas grits his teeth. “It’s real evidence that Soren is whacked .”
“Hey, that’s not fair,” Jesse objects. “Could it be that he just - missed home?”
Missed home? Lukas almost laughs. “If you miss home,” he seethes, “you go and visit. You don’t build an exact replica.” And if Soren doesn’t have this bomb there won’t be a home to go back to at all. His heart squeezes painfully. And nobody to return to either. Aiden. Gill. Maya. So many others. Maybe dead. Maybe worse.
Lukas clenches the wool in his hands. This is who they’re all relying on to kill the Witherstorm? Some - fucking - lunatic?
Lukas flings the wool across the room. “We came here for nothing!” he shouts. He grabs fistfuls of his hair. “What are we supposed to do now?” There’s no way in hell that they can rely on Soren. No way, right? Not to save the world, at least. No goddamn way in hell.
“Lukas,” Jesse calls after him. “Are you okay, man?”
Lukas snaps around. “Just look around, Jesse!” he snarls. His resolve wavers when Jesse flinches. “If the greatest builder of all time has spent years working on this -” He jerks his hands around. “-what’re the chances he’ll even have that bomb, huh?” Lukas spins on his heel so the others can’t see his tears. He wipes his face, roughly, and mutters, “I’ve had enough crazy for one day.”
He stalks over to a woollen tree in the distance and presses his back against it. Only days ago he had done the same thing in the Overworld, before any of this happened. Before any of his frustration turned into regret and then frustration again. He folds his arms, fists trembling, knuckles whitening. Great. Great. He raises his shoulders to his face. What do we do? He’s been trying to hold onto hope this whole time, the hope that the Order of the Stone will be able to help with the Witherstorm. The hope that he’ll be able to talk to the Ocelots, to apologize - or to at least be able to see them once more. The hope drains out of him, pooling around at his feet. In its place comes a hollow, muted despair.
We can’t do it , Lukas realizes. We can’t beat it. We can’t win.
He’s never going to see the other Ocelots again, is he?
The remnants of their last conversation come back to him. Aiden’s indignant scowl. Maya’s gently-delivered disagreement. Gill’s genuine confusion. How they had all frowned at him, left him to defend himself against the three of them. Is it that bad that he wants to stick to his morals? So much so that his own friends turn against him? I was doing the right thing, wasn’t I? Maybe Lukas should’ve made himself clearer, talked to them far gentler, giving himself the time to think before he replied - but now - maybes aren’t enough. The other Ocelots are dead - they have to be - or they’re somewhere far from Lukas, far out of sight. Lukas doesn’t know what he’d prefer. No - nonsense, of course he wants them to be alive - he wants their guaranteed safety more than anything - but what difference does it make? He doesn’t know if they’re safe. He can’t say for sure. If he’s sure of anything, after all this running around headless, it’s that there’s no way in hell the lot of them are going to kill the Witherstorm. Jesse can be as determined as they want. Gabriel can believe in them as much as he wants. But there’s no point. No foreseeable future. How much damage will have been done by the time the Witherstorm is killed, if at all?
Lukas looks up again, his eyes drifting over to Petra. She’s on the other side of the woollen landscape, crouched against a heap of fake grass. She grimaces, lips pressed so tightly that they’re turning white, and wraps her arms tightly around herself. Is Lukas just imagining things, or is her skin going purple? Not a viciously dark shade of it, but lighter - like paper stained by mold. She looks so sick. Like she could collapse at any moment. Suspended in that tractor beam for too long. Lukas doing nothing.
Hatred flows into him like a tide. How could he have been so selfish , just standing to the side like that? Jesse had moved - Jesse had at least gone to try help her and Gabriel. Lukas has so much to owe Petra yet - yet - would he even have been able to move if it had been Aiden or Maya or Gill? Would he have stood there, useless, if one of them had been trapped too? If it had been Aiden , Lukas muses sourly, at least he would have moved. At least he would have gone to help.
God, what has he gotten himself into?
He notices Jesse approaching him and sours even more. Don’t pretend like you can fix this , he thinks scornfully. Don’t pretend like you care.
“What d’you want?” he snaps, as soon as they’re within earshot.
Jesse leans on the tree beside him. “Petra’s worried about you,” they state. They pause, only briefly, before continuing, “To be honest.. I am, too.”
Lukas’ scowl slips, and so does the grip on his arms. After all this, despite his outbursts, Jesse still takes the time to check on him. Don’t pretend like you care. Maybe they’re not pretending after all, if they really feel the need to do this. He turns his eyes away, embarrassed, and mumbles, “Thanks.”
Jesse smiles slightly. Lukas turns back to them and straightens.
“Listen,” he sighs, “I know I’ve been prickly, okay? But, Jesse, I think-” His eyebrows furrow. “I think something’s wrong. With Petra.” His eyes find her again. She’s shifted, no longer clutching her middle but rather just her arm. Jesse’s eyes trail over as well, and their lips flatten, knuckles going white.
Lukas frowns at them. Do they know something I don’t? “I mean, you have to have noticed,” he continues, prompting them to reply. “The lack of energy, the laboured breathing..”
Jesse sucks in a sharp breath. “I’m not supposed to talk about it,” they stammer.
Lukas’ heart falls through the ground. “Wait - talk about what?” He pushes himself off the tree, stumbling a little, and grabs them by the shoulders. “Jesse,” he pleads, “if I’m right about this, you have to tell me. Please. ”
Jesse is quiet for a moment. They look into his eyes, mouth moving but not shaping words. They glance quickly over their shoulder, then back at him.
“Look - Lukas,” Jesse says in a low voice, “Petra’s sick.”
Lukas’ vision blurs for a second. His hands slip away from their shoulders.
“How long have you known?” he breathes, the words barely leaving his mouth.
Jesse ducks their head. “A while. But she asked me not to say anything.”
They look over to their friend again. Petra’s coughing is audible, even from here. “The Wither infected her with something,” they infer. “Before I managed to pull her out.”
Petra suspended in the tractor beam. Withering purple tendrils. Lukas laughs. Of course. Of course.
His legs give. He backs into the fake tree. All that slowing. All that dryness in her throat. Lukas should have done something. He should have gone to save her.
“So everything I was worried about is true,” he whispers. “This is my fault, Jesse. Petra’s withersickness - it’s because of me.”
Jesse drops to their knees, eyes wide. “What? That’s nonsense, Lukas, there’s no way this is because of you.”
Petra suspended in the tractor beam. Jesse throwing themself at her, at Gabriel. Lukas shakes his head, over and over and over. Before they’re even finished talking he interrupts, “If I hadn’t choked, you would’ve pulled Petra out of that tractor beam sooner-”
“For all we know, Petra didn’t get sick until way after that!” Jesse argues over him.
Lukas grits his teeth and turns. “Maybe you’re right,” he mumbles. Maybe. “But - if one of our best fighters is sick..” His face splits into something - something akin to a smile but definitely not meant to be one. “Do we even stand a chance anymore?” he whispers, then laughs, one hand at his head. “Not like we haven’t dealt with some grade-A problems before, but..” He sags, remembering the storm, the beams, the fact that everyone out there could be long dead. “I just can’t help but feel kinda - hopeless.” He shrugs, and tries to straighten his posture again.
Jesse sighs. Then their hand is on Lukas’ shoulder, their grip subtle. He goes stiff at their touch, unmoving, still.
“If we stick together, we can do anything,” they insist. “Even something that feels impossible.”
Do you really think that? Lukas shifts his head back towards them. They look so determined, so sincere. He tries a smile but it doesn’t come. Of course Jesse would think that. So Lukas tries to believe it, too. “It just feels extra impossible now,” he murmurs.
Jesse squeezes his shoulder. “Then we stick together extra hard,” they declare firmly, hauling themself to their feet. They hold out a hand, offering it to him with a smile.
Lukas stares blankly at it. That’s easy for you to say, huh? But he nods anyway, and takes their hand. “Okay.” He hoists himself up, and frowns again. “I just wish Petra would tell everybody,” he sighs. “It would just make things - easier. We could all help her just a bit more. Y’know?”
Jesse nods, sorrow in their eyes. “I’ll talk to her,” they promise him. “You just - hang in there, Lukas. We’ll get through this, or we die trying.”
They're marching off before Lukas can reply. He folds his arms again, a mix of apprehension and gratitude swirling in his chest. “Wouldn’t be that useful if we’re dead,” he mumbles to himself. But Jesse’s been standing strong. Jesse’s been flitting between everyone and holding them all up. Keeping everyone sane and high-spirited, considering all factors to a problem before making the final call. They treat everyone as an equal, rather than below them. They treat Lukas as an equal, rather than someone below them. Like he belongs. Do they really want me here? Giving him their cookie. Keeping him out of danger. Giving him a chance to make up for everything, even when they could’ve easily said no. Lukas has not been in this group long enough to see it flourish from its roots. But somehow, right now, he’s thankful more than anything that Jesse is the leader of this ragtag team, rather than him.
💧
Lukas was wrong on a couple parts. Namely, being able to rely on Soren to help destroy the Witherstorm. And how useful Ellegaard and Magnus would be. Having left the End, Soren procures the ingredients for the Formidi-Bomb, and both Ellegaard and Magnus offer Jesse their armour. Which brings him to the fact that he was also right on some parts. Like relying on any of the Order to actually destroy the Witherstorm. Because Jesse is the one who volunteers to craft the bomb and set it off, back in the Overworld amongst the chaos and panic and ravaged purple sky. Lukas wants to protest at first - they don’t have to do this, they don’t have to put themself in danger like that and potentially die - but there’s no time, not even to talk them out of it. Lukas takes his place near Petra, keeping an eye on her while he tears build ideas from his mind and makes them from the ground up to distract the Witherstorm overhead. He glances back occasionally, seeing Jesse rushing forwards with a wild expression. They’re his friend now - even if he finds himself doubting the fact - so he begs, inside, for them to make it out alive. He doesn’t bother looking at the fleeing crowds of people. None of them will be his Ocelots, anyway.
And then, the other part he was so sure about, back in the End. Because merely minutes after the bomb is set off, minutes after Lukas joins the recovery effort, the Witherstorm resurrects.
He holds tight onto the horse he’s riding, directing all his focus onto steering the animal. He can hear his breathing - heavy, wheezing, a growing tightness in his chest. He remembers the same fear from when he had run for the first time. Petra suspended in the tractor beam. Lukas, frozen. He will not make the same mistake twice. So he holds onto the horse and onto his adrenaline and makes sure he steers himself and the group to safety. And Gabriel. Jesse had picked him up moments after the Witherstorm reawoke. The poor bastard’s amnesic and confused and red in the eyes. Pushed against him, Lukas can hear the Warrior muttering to himself - gibberish, mostly. But he talks as if he is a genuine stranger to his own mind. Lukas isn’t sure what scares him more - the Witherstorm, or what it can do to people in the blink of an eye. And Gabriel had been suspended in the Witherstorm’s tractor beam too. He doesn’t want to think about the possible timeline of if Petra hadn’t found her way to the Order temple.
The group of them ride, ride and come to a slope of rolling hills and swaying trees. Jesse leads them into a shallow cave - not massive, but big enough for the lot of them and their horses. Lukas herds the horses together, patting each of their snouts, lingering the longest before the dappled dark-brown mare he’d ridden. She butts her head into his hand, tail flicking. Lukas smiles wearily at her.
“Thanks for saving my ass out there,” he murmurs, stroking her behind the ears. The horse jerks her head to one side, as if to say “don’t sweat it” or something along those lines. Lukas takes his hand away. He’s ridden a horse a few times, but has never really thought about keeping one as a companion. He feels uncomfortable at the idea of taming any animal just for the hell of it. But this horse has already been tamed, and she seems to like him enough.
Lukas turns sharply as raised voices trickle out of the cave. He sighs, and heads back into its depths.
Soren, the damn coward, is shouting at Jesse. “Why is that thing still alive? My instructions were simple!” He points an accusatory finger towards them. “You were the one in the middle of everything. What went wrong?”
Irritation sparks through Lukas. As if he has any right to complain. Jesse had risked their life to destroy that thing. Not any members of the mighty Order, but Jesse. A practical nobody before the Witherstorm. A somebody-turned-hero.
Jesse folds their arms. “The Formidi-Bomb just wasn’t strong enough,” they reply tersely. “I mean, it ripped the Witherstorm apart, but it didn’t make a dent in the Command Block.”
“So the Command Block is still out there?” Soren demands.
“Of course it is!” Jesse snaps back.
Soren tears at his hair. “Great! Not only did Ellie die for nothing , but we are entirely out of ideas and out of luck. To make matters worse, we’ve gone from one Witherstorm to three! Our plan was a total failure!”
“Hold on just a second.” Jesse lifts up a hand. “Is the Command Block controlling all three Witherstorms?”
“Why are you asking me?” Soren spits. “Am I expected to know every last thing in the universe?”
Jesse takes a step back, hand dropping to their side, and says what everyone else has been thinking: “We were counting on you.”
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have been!” Soren glares them all down, and then sighs. “I need a moment to think..” He shoulders past Lukas and out of the cave, shaking his head.
The amnesic Gabriel squints after his old friend. “Is he always like this?” he wonders loudly.
Magnus, standing next to him, chuckles. “You have no idea.”
Lukas sighs, following Soren with his eyes. The Architect stops near a tree, staring off into the distance. Lukas swears that his moustache is quivering.
Gabriel gasps deeply. “That jacket!” He points, and it takes Lukas two seconds to realize the Warrior is pointing at him , at the ocelot face atop black leather. “That jacket, I recognize it!”
Lukas freezes. “Huh?”
Jesse looks over at him too. “Huh? Lukas always wears that jacket.”
“No.” Gabriel shakes his head. “There were other people wearing that very same jacket when I was thrown from the monster! Ugh.. it hurts just to think about-”
Lukas’ world inverts.
There were other people wearing that very same jacket when I was thrown from the monster.
There were other people wearing that very same jacket.
There were other people.
There were.
Lukas’ heart slams against his ribcage.
“Jesse,” he breathes. “If what Gabriel said is true-”
Jesse’s eyebrows shoot into the roof. Lukas lets out a laugh, an actual, genuine laugh - the first he must have uttered for days. There were other people wearing that very same jacket. There were other people.
Lukas can see the moment that the dots connect in Jesse’s head. “You don’t mean..”
“I mean, do you think?” Lukas holds a hand to his head. His vision is dancing with bursts of coloured stars. He feels like he might faint. “I thought for sure they were gone, but-” Maybe they had just been trapped in the Witherstom after all. Maybe they hadn’t been in its grasp at all - maybe they had survived and found some place to hide, like Lukas had, like all of them had - maybe then - maybe they-
“Your friends could still be out there,” Jesse says, eyes widening.
Lukas laughs again, and he starts pacing on the spot. “I know!” he exclaims, light-headed and dizzy. Aiden Maya Gill. They could be out there. No - they are out there. Gabriel had seen them - he’s amnesic, sure, but not to an extent where he can’t remember immediate events. Surely. There were other people wearing that very same jacket. Which means - “I have to go after them! They might need me.” They had needed him. Maybe they still do. Lukas is their leader. What kind of leader wouldn’t take every chance to save their people? He’s already let down the Ocelots enough. To them, he might be dead - dead or worse - and he can’t let them go. Not again. He has to find them. He can’t let himself hold this information and do nothing with it. He’s already done nothing once, once, a thousand times. Petra’s health is failing even more now; she can barely stand. Lukas won’t let more of his friends suffer because of his own fears.
Besides , he thinks to himself, looking pleadingly at them, Jesse will understand, right? After all they’ve done for me.
There is a blank look in their eyes. He doesn’t wait for their reply.
Lukas makes straight for the chest at the far wall of the cave. He flings it open and rummages through - he’ll need a lot of decent blocks if he wants to build something to distract the Witherstorm, if he runs into it while he’s out searching. Or to make some temporary shelter - something sturdy, to keep out the cold. He pushes the piles of gravel and dirt aside, but grabs a few stacks of cobblestone, some gunpowder and some wood. He startles when Petra stumbles, gasping, and wonders if he should talk to everyone before he sets off. No. That way, it’ll seem like he’s saying goodbye. And he doesn’t want to say goodbye to these people. Not yet. Not for several years, he would hope. After all they’ve gone through together - Lukas is sure now that they’re his friends too. I’ll find them again , he vows. As soon as I find the Ocelots, I’ll find them again. So he stands, about to shut the chest closed, about to make his way towards the horses.
“Lukas.”
Lukas glances over his shoulder.
The look Jesse wears upon their face is etched with fatigue. “What are you doing?” they ask, stepping closer to him.
Lukas cringes. Just let me leave quietly , he pleads. “I told you,” he answers. “I’m going after my friends. I thought the other Ocelots were dead-” Tractor beams. Toxic, withering purple. The dread he’s carried and let go over these past several days. There were other people wearing that very same jacket. Lukas shakes his head. “But if they’re not,” he continues, “I need to go find them.”
Jesse says nothing. Their jaw goes slack, their eyes go dull, and it occurs to Lukas after a brief moment of hesitation that they are reluctant to let him go.
He sighs. “Look. I’m grateful to you guys for bringing me this far, but - Aiden, Gill, Maya - I can’t leave alone them out there. Not with three Witherstorms raging.” Not when he’d left them already. Even if it hadn’t been on purpose.
He shuts the chest now, a knot in his throat. Jesse is still silent, but Lukas sees their fingers fidgeting, teeth scoring their lips. They’re the leader, and he’s only a member of their team. Of course. If it were his call to make, he would be unsure, too. From Jesse’s perspective - letting him go would be putting him in danger. But letting him stay would be heaping more worry onto him, a burden greater than anything the physical world could ever hope to produce. But he has to. He has to.
“I’ve got to try, Jesse,” Lukas pleads. “Or else I couldn’t live with myself.” Aiden, Gill, Maya - their frowns and disappointment his most recent memory of them. There were other people wearing that very same jacket.
Jesse gives a slight shake of their head. “Lukas-”
“Look..” Lukas sighs, cutting them off. “You and me, we’ve made a pretty good team so far. I’d even call us friends,” he adds, a thrill rushing through him at the prospect. “So I hope you’ll understand why I need to go help my old friends.” I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass. No, Aiden hadn’t been. He’d been right about Lukas being flawed. He’s never been soft - not like Lukas has. If he had been even a quarter of what Aiden is then maybe none of this would have happened in the first place. I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass. Lukas turns his head away.
“They’d do it for me,” he whispers. “Same way you’d go back for any of your friends.” The same way Jesse had gone back for him, back to that dingy basement.
Lukas is half-expecting Jesse to stay silent again. Some part of him knows that if they do, it would tear at him even if he chooses to leave, how upset he’s made his - his friend . He knows what he wants can’t make everyone happy. No singular choice anyone in the world makes can do that. But Lukas has already chosen. And here he is again, talking about it with his leader out of necessity. Out of respect.
And Jesse nods - they nod , and look downwards for just a moment, not even enough time to blink. “Then you should go,” they say with finality. “Go find them, Lukas. Just-” They stop abruptly, fingers curling up tight around their arm guards. “Listen to your heart,” they murmur.
Relief floods into him, so fast and so rough that he almost weeps. “Thank you, Jesse,” Lukas whispers. And, just for the record, “I’ll find them, and then I’ll find you again too.” He holds his head up high. “I promise,” he promises, because he means it. He means it more than anything.
Jesse walks him to the herd of horses, solemn. Lukas returns to the dappled dark-brown mare, patting her snout for a few moments before he leads her out. He mounts her as he exits the cave, checking again that he has everything - he has. Lukas grips the reins tight, and casts one more look towards Jesse. Their face holds no trace of emotion, no emotion besides weariness. Lukas smiles, just slightly, before he snaps the reins and rides the mare into the night.
💧
He takes to the calling the mare Maria. Not a particularly unique or stand-out-ish name, but one that works, and one that the horse takes to as quickly as he does. Lukas counts the days.
Days one to three, he steers clear of the path on which he had come to the cave. The Witherstorm lurks overhead in whichever horizon he looks to, omnipresent, and it’s a fool’s mission to go charging straight back the way he came. So instead he searches the surrounding hills. He checks every cave he comes across, every mound of dirt that may once have been a hut. He finds nothing, nobody, except wild animals quivering in fear as the storm roils on in the overcast sky.
Days four to seven, Lukas tentatively starts to make his way back to the the fields, stopping on occasion to grow wheat and make haybales for Maria. Sometimes he’s convinced that the Witherstorm is heading his way, but other times he’s unsure if it itself even knows where it’s going. He doesn’t come across a single living being in those days. By the time he’s back where the Witherstorm had reawoken, there is no doubt that it has already moved on from this place, decimated and stripped bare.
Days eight to eleven, Lukas decides to return to the Ocelots’ house, or where it would be, if it were still standing. Maybe - just maybe, the other three would have gone back to grab their things or anything else useful - maybe not recently, but perhaps when the Witherstorm took its first few breaths, and home had been a sanctuary that was within reach, even if it wasn’t enough. Either way - it might be useful to look. If their house still stands, and if there are signs of disturbance to its belongings - no, maybe it’s a stupid idea. But he’s running out of options and - maybe - time.
He reaches his home on the twelfth day, and his heart twists just looking at it. The roof is completely gone, the doors swinging on their hinges and the walls just barely holding up. Lukas dismounts Maria, feeding and tying her lead to the broken mail post outside. He creeps up to the front door, pushing it open.
It looks just as dismal on the inside as it is from without. Books and papers are scattered everywhere, carpeting the wooden floorboards. Lukas bends down to pick up the nearest one. As he brings it close to his face he realizes it’s the final design of the fountain he and the Ocelots built at their first Endercon. The one that had gotten them their first ever win. He laughs, despite himself, and turns it over. On the back is a neat paragraph of handwriting he’s never seen before. Aiden’s - Lukas realizes. It’s dated almost nine years ago.
Hey, Lou, it reads. You left this sketch out on your desk and I thought it would be funny if I left a note on it for you to find, so congratulations on finding it. Yeah, yeah, don’t start going off at me about how I’m ruining your good paper, whatever. I know you don’t really care. But while I’m here I might as well tell you, I love your designs, man. You’ve got some real talent, you know that? I’m not good with expressing all this kinda emotion up-front., in-person, so this note will have to do. I wanted you to know, you’re a great person. Furthermore, you’re a great friend. So here’s to more years of our friendship to come. With admiration, Aiden.
Something drips onto Lukas’ hand.
He looks up, expecting there to be rain. It’s dark, stormy - of course it is - but the air is cool and dry, no traces of drizzle to be felt. Lukas looks down again. The note has blurred. Then it occurs to him to bring a hand to his eyes. It comes away wet.
Everything I do is for this team. Everything I do is for the Ocelots. Maybe Aiden’s attitude hadn’t been the best. Maybe he hadn’t gone the right way about all this. Yet. Lukas looks at the note again. You’re a great person. You’re a great friend. So here’s to more years of our friendship to come. Yet Aiden is still a crucial part of the Ocelots. If not for Aiden, Lukas wouldn’t have all these wins under his belt at all. If not for Aiden, Lukas would still be lonely. If not for the three of them, Lukas wouldn’t have had anyone for another ten or so years. And even that is generous - perhaps he wouldn’t have had anyone at all. Maybe Lukas has been the selfish one this whole time. Holding them back, downplaying the significance of their victories. It’s been two weeks and he still hasn’t found them. Maybe he will never find them again.
Lukas’ shoulders quake. He sinks to his knees, clutching the design to his chest, and lets the tears come, come as fast as his shame.
💧
The house hasn’t been touched, otherwise. All their belongings are still there, albeit jostled out of place. Lukas takes a few things from his own chest - iron, paper, gold - and leaves, on the dawn of the thirteenth day, and sets off once again. The fountain design is folded and tucked away in his inner breast pocket. Crumpled, the ink smearing, but it is still worth a hundred times more than anything else he carries on him.
Days thirteen to sixteen, Lukas heads northwest, towards the major cave systems. The Witherstorm doesn’t seem to have done much damage to the world underground, only targeting what it sees on the surface. Those systems would make a good hiding spot. But even though Lukas spends the entire sixteenth day underground strip-mining for some more cobblestone and ore, and though several townspeople he just about recognizes skirt past him, none of them are his Ocelots. He takes the chance to ask around, just in case - but the few people here don’t give him any useful answers.
Days seventeen to eighteen. Lukas is falling apart at the seams. There’s barely been signs of anyone , let alone his teammates, his friends - should he have even left Jesse’s group to begin with? What if he’s only going on a wild goose chase, following leads that don’t exist, searching for people who might already be dead? But then he remembers Gabriel’s words. There were other people wearing that very same jacket when I was thrown from the monster. The Ocelots are alive, or at least had been as of two weeks ago. And then he remembers the sketch in his pocket. You’re a great friend. So here’s to more years of our friendship to come. And just as quickly as the doubt comes, the resolve flows in and washes it all away. Lukas can’t give up on them. Not when they could still be out there. Not yet. Not ever.
Day nineteen. Lukas calls it a night, after steering Maria through thick forests and sandy shores. The sun is dipping as he searches for a cave to shelter in, finding one carved into a distant hill. He pats Maria’s neck, and rides over, shaking himself every few seconds so he doesn’t fall asleep.
Reaching the mouth of the cave, he dismounts Maria and leads her in. A sharp wind picks up outside and Lukas shivers. Maybe he’ll make a campfire to stay warm. He’s starting to lose feeling in his fingers.
To his surprise, the depths of the cave are already lit up with torches. Lukas places down a fencepost and ties Maria’s lead to it. He catches a whiff of smoke and cooking meat, and his stomach grumbles before he can help himself.
Lukas wonders if he should leave. Someone’s already clearly living here - maybe it’s not the best idea, intruding in on their shelter. Or - maybe he could talk to them first, and if they’re amiable enough, they’ll let him stick around until morning. He walks up slowly to the corner, hand hovering over his sword. Just in case.
The person on the other side lets out a cry. Lukas staggers back into the wall, hands shooting above his head as they point an iron sword at his throat.
“Woah, woah, woah, I’m not armed!” he exclaims, cringing because he is armed, just not holding his weapon. He glances up at the other person, and locks up.
Her sword clatters to the ground.
“Lukas?” Maya whispers.
Oh my god. Lukas’ arms drop to his side.
“Maya?” he breathes. Then he laughs, and laughs, and then Maya is laughing too and her arms are around him and his around her and they stay like that, static, relief crashing into them both.
“Oh my god, Lukas!” Maya pulls back from him, her lips quivering. “You’re alive! You’re okay!”
Lukas laughs again. Maya’s hair is frizzed, and it’s clear she hasn’t gotten enough sleep lately - but she’s here . She’s here. She’s alive . Which means-
“Lukas? Did I hear that right?”
Gill steps into view, dazed-looking but also alive - alive - alive - he did it - he found them-
“Gill!” Lukas’ arms are around him too and Gill laughs, squeezing him tight. “Oh, thank goodness - you guys are okay-”
Then Lukas sees him - leaning against the back of the cave, mouth open but eyes dead. Aiden does not move. Aiden does not say anything.
“Aiden,” Lukas whispers. “Aiden - oh, you guys are all here - you’re alive! You’re okay!”
“ You’re alive!” Maya shakes her head, eyes wide. “Lukas - we’ve been worried sick - that monster out there is destroying everything, sucking up everything and everyone into those beams-”
“I know!” Lukas interrupts. “I know, Maya, I-”
Aiden finally moves after this. He stalks over to Lukas, to the others - alive, safe, well - and gapes. “Where the hell have you been, Lukas?” he demands. “Ever since - after the comp, we lost touch with you - it’s been weeks , man.”
Aiden’s fists curl up. He looks so angry, so distraught - for a second Lukas is scared he’s going to punch him.
But Aiden only shakes his head and continues, “Do you have any idea what kind of burden you’ve put on us? You just - up and disappearing like that - how could you just-”
“No! I-” Lukas lets go of Gill, catching his breath. “I’ve been looking for you guys - for weeks now - ever since I heard Gabriel say that he was pulled out of the Witherstorm by people wearing ocelot jackets-”
“Gabriel?” Aiden echoes. “That was only three weeks ago. That Wither thing has been here for a couple of months already.” He exhales sharply and folds his arms. “Where have you been?” he repeats.
Lukas shakes his head. “I’ll explain everything,” he promises. “Just - you guys - I-” His vision blurs with tears and he wipes his eyes. “I thought you were dead,” he whispers. “I - I thought you were dead, and that the - that conversation we had after the building competition - I thought that’d be the last time we’d ever talk-”
“That doesn’t matter now!” Maya squeezes Lukas’ hand tight. “Oh, I’m just so glad you’re okay.”
Gill clears his throat. “Aiden was sure you wouldn’t come after us,” he says, glaring at the man in question. “But Maya and I never doubted you for a second. I told him - “even if Lukas is in danger himself there’s no way he wouldn’t look for us”. All we needed was hope.”
“And time,” Aiden adds sourly. “A lot. Of time.”
Maya rolls her eyes. “Oh, shut up,” she scoffs. “Don’t act like you weren’t worried, man. You can drop the tough-guy act now.” She shakes her head and lets go of Lukas’ hand. “Anyways, are you hungry? We found some chickens earlier today, there’s lots to go around. And while we have dinner you can tell us all about where you’ve been.”
The four of them sit around the campfire - the four of them, all alive and okay, even if shaken - and the other Ocelots look towards Lukas as he tells them about it all. About Ivor and his basement lair; about the Order temple; about Soren’s fortress, the End; about how the Witherstorm rebirthed itself threefold. About Jesse. About the friends he’s made on the way. Lukas looks to them all, hoping that something in each of them will change when he speaks about their old rivals, sparse as he makes the detail. But at the mere mention of Jesse’s name the look in Aiden’s eyes turns sour. Maya and Gill’s smiles droop, slowly, the more he talks. But the three of them stay quiet to let him finish, and stay quiet for the whole minute after.
The silence is heavy. Lukas pats himself down to give his sweating hands something to do. He checks all his pockets, all except the inner breast one. The note is still there, he knows. He won’t take it out now, not now. Not now that he’s found his Ocelots again, alive, alive, alive.
“So,” Aiden starts, after a while of staring into the campfire. “All this time, running away from that Witherstorm - this whole time, you’ve been with Jesse’s team?”
“Not on purpose,” Lukas says. “I swear - I’ve only been with them because they’re working with the Order to stop the Witherstorm. They-” He swallows, the words caught in his throat. “They needed me,” he forces out, mind wandering back to the last time he’d seem them. “They still need me. I promised them I’d find them again, as soon as I found you.”
Aiden’s face grows stormy. “ We needed you,” he shoots back. “ We needed you, Lukas - and what do you do? Exactly what I expected.” He crosses his arms. “You abandoned us.”
The fears he’d been letting slip rush back into him. “No,” Lukas gasps. “No, no, Aiden - guys - look - I promise I was going to find you again, I promise - but Gabriel gave Jesse the Order amulet, and they asked me to stay with them - to help-”
“Oh, they asked you to stay?” Aiden tosses his head back and laughs. “Since when do we let someone like Jesse tell us what to do?” He shakes his head. “You should’ve just left ‘em. How do you know they even wanted you there? The Dead Ends aren’t your gang.”
Lukas stares at his palms. Did they want me to stay? “Jesse asked me to stay,” he repeats, unsure, wavering.
Aiden gets to his feet. “You left us for them ,” he says again, seething. “After all these years, Lou - you still value them over your own fucking team.”
“Are you serious?” Lukas stands too, mouth agape. “Are you hearing yourself, Aiden? How could you even say that? The Ocelots are everything to me. I’ve been beating myself up from the inside just thinking about where you guys are-”
“Well, it wasn’t nearly enough beating-up,” Aiden snaps, “‘cause you didn’t look for us. You’re supposed to be our leader, but you just - left us, Lukas! Do you have any idea what we’ve been through? Do you have any idea how fucking scared I was, not knowing if you were-” He chokes on the words, fists clenched as he turns his face to the wall.
“Aiden..” Maya shuffles over to him and places a hand on his. He wrenches that hand away.
“Since that thing emerged, we tried looking for you,” Aiden whispers. “It was chaos outside - and we heard Gabriel ordering everyone to run to his temple - I thought we should stay to try get you at least, but..” He shakes his head again. “Ever since, we’ve been hiding, here and there. Going out in turns to get resources. To try find you.” He laughs, scornfully, sadly, and spits, “And after all this time, turns out you’re cozying up to that Dead End Jesse .”
Lukas’ hands are trembling. He tries to protest again - tries to plead with Aiden, with Maya and Gill - but nothing comes out. Nothing. You’re supposed to be our leader. He’s supposed to be their leader. Yet here his team is, cracking. Some leader you are. Some leader indeed.
Gill shakes his head. “I have to say,” he begins, “Aiden is right. You could’ve been here for us , Lukas. You should have been.”
Lukas’ vision blurs again. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, sinking back to the floor. “I’m sorry.”
“Aiden’s done a lot for us,” Maya adds. “He helped lead us to shelter, kept us safe so we didn’t get sucked up into that Witherstorm. Once it died - well, for the first time anyway - we went over to help. Gabriel was there. And then..” She sighs, and rubs her temples. “Well, what I’m saying is, it would’ve been cool if you were with us, Lukas. We’re barely a team without you, even if we..” She shakes her head. “You know what? We’re barely a team without you, period. All that running and helping people was kinda exhilarating.. but it didn’t feel the same without you.”
Lukas nods, and scrubs his eyes. “I know,” he chokes out. “I’m sorry, guys - I really am. I promise I’m not going anywhere from now on. Whatever I do now, whatever we do - we do as a team.”
At this, Aiden sniffles, and wipes his nose on his sleeve. He turns, eyes glassy, and sits back down. “We’re a team, Lou,” he sighs. “Let’s not turn our backs on each other again, okay?”
Lukas nods. “Okay.”
Gill sighs too, and hugs his knees close to his chest. “So,” he says. “What now?” He looks in the direction of the exit. “I mean.. the Witherstorm-”
Aiden glances up at Lukas. “You said Jesse still needs you,” he states, and Lukas does not miss the contempt he puts into their name.
But he nods again. “Like I said,” he explains, “Jesse’s with the Order of the Stone, making a plan as for what to do next. They’re probably on their way to the Witherstorm already.. again..” I’ll find them, and then I’ll find you again too. I promise. “First thing in the morning, we’re going to find them,” Lukas decides. “I made them a promise. I’m going to keep it.”
Aiden frowns. “What, all of us?”
“All of us.” Lukas stands, and walks over to the corner where there is a crafting table. “Look, I know you guys don’t like the Dead Enders, and I know - what with everything that’s happened at Endercon..” He shakes his head as he bends over the table. “But they’re good people - all of them. Jesse included. They were kind to me.” He glances over his shoulder, lashes lowered. “You guys should get to know them. They’re pretty cool.”
Maya shrugs. “That might be asking too much,” she says casually. “But I’m with you, Lukas. If we get to help save the world from this Witherstorm..” She grins. “I can’t imagine people will wanna pass up the chance to cheer our names.”
Gill nods, a smile spreading across his face. “I’m in, too. Wherever Lukas goes, so will I.”
Lukas smiles. “Thanks for trusting me, guys.” His eyes find Aiden’s, which are no longer glassy, but now hold the strong, resolved bravado he always carries.
Aiden groans. “Well, I can’t let you idiots run off on your own..”
“Oh, come on, Aiden,” Maya laughs. “You know you’d be coming with no matter what.”
“Yeah, ‘cause I don’t want your asses to die on me, alright?” He pauses before adding, “Besides, we’ve just got Lou back. I’m not letting him out of my sight again.”
Lukas grins. “Rest up, guys,” he tells them, turning back to the crafting table. “Tomorrow, we’ve got a Witherstorm to tail.”
💧
Lukas waits until the other Ocelots are fast asleep before he joins them. Until then, he busies himself with crafting, flicking through the recipes for something he could make. If he’s right about Jesse’s whereabouts, then they would be charging back towards the Witherstorm by now with whatever weapon they have - assuming they have a weapon at all. They probably do. They’re Jesse - they’ve probably thought of something ages ago. Lukas only hopes that he and the Ocelots will arrive in time to help.
It takes him an embarrassingly long time for him to realize he should make fireworks. They’re loud, bright, and eye-catching - surely even to the Witherstorm. Lukas has just enough paper and gunpowder to make an entire stack, and he picks some flowers from outside to make dyes for the stars. He pats Maria on the way back, and goes to sleep once he finishes the night’s work.
They leave at first dawn. Maya is most impressed when the other Ocelots walk out and see Maria. “You tamed a horse?” She extends a hand and pats Maria, who sniffs back.
“She was already tamed when I found her,” Lukas explains, checking that her saddle is fastened. “We’ve just been sticking together ever since.”
“Hm.” Gill reaches out a hand too. “What’s her name?”
Lukas unties her. “Maria,” he says, not looking up.
Aiden snorts. “ Maria? Of all the names in the world, you chose Maria? You could’ve named her Bolt or something.”
“It works,” Lukas replies, somewhat terse, and takes out the fireworks he’d made. “Here. Once we’re there, and if Jesse’s there too, we’ll use these to distract the Witherstorm.”
The others take their portions. Maya’s brow furrows. “And if they’re not..?”
Lukas shrugs. “We’ll just have to see.”
The Witherstorm isn’t hard to find. Lukas, whom only Maria will let steer her, takes turn having the others ride passenger. They stop only to eat and rest, a few times while the sun’s still up, then finding somewhere to sleep when it gets dark. Some nights the Ocelots look so tired, and Lukas worries privately that they’re going to stop following him through all this. But each morning they pull him up, determined, and his misgivings vanish. This is his team . He may have left them on their own for a bit, but he can still trust them - he’s spent so many years with them already. They have his back. And this time, Lukas has theirs, too.
💧
Lukas starts to count the days again. Twenty. Twenty-one. Twenty-two. The four of them gain more on the storm with every hour. He can only hope that Jesse is on the way.
The Ocelots reach the Witherstorm on the twenty-fifth day. They’re in the ruins of a courtyard - the one in Soren’s fortress - with what remains of the walls cracking. And, there are Endermen everywhere.
The others instinctively shield their eyes. “What are those things doing here?” Gill shouts over the noise and whooshing debris.
“Wait! They’re all teleporting up to the Witherstorm-” Maya points with her free hand. “They’re not here for us!”
Lukas searches his memory. “They were taking apart the Witherstorm before I came to find you guys,” he shouts at the others. “That’s probably what they’re doing.” He takes his hands away, dismounting Maria. “Thank you,” he whispers to her, patting one side of her face. “Get somewhere safe. I’ll find you after.”
“Lou, come on!” Aiden calls.
Lukas darts after them. “D’you guys see Jesse?” he calls, glancing around.
“No,” Gill calls back. “No sign-”
Shit. Maybe they aren’t here after all - maybe they’re still figuring something out, and Lukas has just led the Ocelots to their deaths.
“How do ya like that, you purple-eyed freak?”
Lukas’ heart begins to pound for very different reasons. Jesse! Their voice sounds far - maybe they’re in the main area of the courtyard, where the Witherstorms hover. Some lungs! Their shout had been audible all the way across the colossal court. Lukas strikes his feet harder into the stone beneath, towards the source of their voice.
“They’re in there!” he tells the others, pointing at the walls beside them. “Let’s go!”
He finds Jesse adorned in new armour - spiked dark gray hedged with Ender purple and pink - it suits them, suits them a lot. Anyway - Jesse is jumping, reaching to grab Olivia by the leg, who has an iron grip on Axel’s leg, both of them suspended in the tractor beam - when did they all get new armour? No, focus - they need you right now - especially now - as the tractor beam sucks Jesse up into it too.
Petra, suspended in the beam. Lukas had done nothing then. But this time, he won’t let himself stay still. This time, he doesn’t fear the Witherstorm. He fears losing his friends far more.
He jumps just in time to reach them. “I got you!” he cries, yanking Jesse back down.
Surprise immediately overrides their expression. “Lukas!” Jesse wheezes as the three of them collapse out of the tractor beam. “You’re here!”
Lukas grins at them when they laugh. “I told you I’d find you again.” He offers his hand to pull them up, the same way they’d pulled him up back in the End. The other Ocelots have caught up to him, smiling wildly, the same way Lukas must be.
“Ocelots,” he calls, “distract that Witherstorm!”
“Hey you!” Maya crows. “Get a load of this!”
Lukas pulls out his own set of fireworks and blasts them up at the roof. Aiden and Gill fall in line beside him, laughing and laughing.
And Jesse is still laughing too. “Lukas, thank you!”
Lukas turns his head towards them, beaming. A heat rushes to his face, and he knows with a jolt that it’s not from the adrenaline. “Anything for a friend,” he says, just loudly enough to for them to hear.
Axel beckons to Jesse with a hand. “Now let’s hurry up and build this thing!” he shouts. They nod, and stumble over without giving Lukas another glance.
“Hey! Look at me!” Aiden hollers, waving his hands around at the Witherstorm.
“No, look at me!” Gill sprints over to the other side of the courtyard, sharing a devious smile with Aiden. Both launch their fireworks at the same time. The Witherstorm howls.
“Hey! Don’t forget us!” Maya slides over to the far wall, Lukas on her heels. “Ah, shoot - I’m almost out!”
Lukas himself has only got five fireworks left. “You guys done yet?” he shouts at Jesse, Olivia, Axel, building what looks to be a rocket launcher.
In the next moment Aiden is beside Lukas again, aiming his fireworks at the Witherstorm’s eyes. “Are they expecting to take it down with that?” he hisses into Lukas’ ear. “I’m not sure if Jesse’s got it in themself, Lou..”
Lukas doesn’t miss the scorn in his voice. “They’ve got to,” he retorts. “They wouldn’t be here if they didn’t.”
Aiden rolls his eyes. “You better be right..”
The machine Jesse and them are building lets out a thunderous sound and fires. Lukas launches his last firework and runs back, mouth falling open as Jesse and - is that Reuben? - careen across the sky and into - into - the Witherstorm.
Gill is gaping upwards too. “What in the world are they doing?”
“Getting themselves killed, is what,” Aiden scoffs. “They better kill the Witherstorm while they can.”
Lukas breathes heavily. Please don’t die , he begs. You’re my friend now, too. He’s still got so much more to talk about with Jesse. He’s still got so much to learn about them.
“Hey! Lukas!”
Olivia’s calling him. He smiles, still panting, and waves at her. “Hey!”
Olivia and Axel run up to the Ocelots, wheezing just as hard. “Nice moves back there, guys!” Axel laughs.
“Yeah, no kidding.” Olivia straightens, dusting off her hands. “You guys came right in time.”
Lukas nods wildly. “I came back to find you guys as soon as I found the Ocelots,” he says, smiling around at his friends. “Thanks, guys. Looks like it’s up to Jesse from here on out.”
“We should get out of here,” Axel urges. “If it can still see us-”
“Isn’t Jesse supposed to be dealing with it?” Aiden cuts in, rolling his eyes. “I’m sure we’ll be fine here.”
“No.” Lukas glances at Aiden. “Axel’s right. Let’s get somewhere else.”
Aiden’s face sours, at which Axel grins massively. The five of them slip out of the courtyard, running out and away.
“Oh, by the way, Lukas,” Axel says suddenly, as they emerge towards a system of pools. “Jesse told got me to hold onto this for you, in case you came back.”
Lukas’ heart leaps. For me? “What is it?”
He and Axel skid to a stop. Aiden notices and stops too, eyebrows raised. Lukas gestures. “You guys go on ahead,” he says. “I’ll catch up.”
Aiden narrows his eyes. But he does not argue, staring over his shoulder as he walks forward, pace leisurely.
“You might have noticed,” Axel continues, “but we’ve all got new armour. I went with Magnus to distract the Witherstorm, but Jess and Via and them? Turns out Ivor had a secret lab - yeah, Ivor! He showed up by the time you were gone,” Axel elaborates, seeing the look on Lukas’ face. “Anyway - they went to Ivor’s lab out in the Far Lands.”
Lukas’ eyes widen. “The Far Lands? Is that even possible?”
“Yup,” Olivia says with a grimace. “Apparently so. It was beautiful, but, man, riding horseback for a week and a half straight? No thanks. Not doing that again.”
Lukas snorts. “So, how was it?” he inquires, glancing around. Maria’s nowhere to be seen. Maybe some part of her had understood the situation and she’d run off to safety like he’d asked.
“Good! It was good.” Olivia smiles. “Man, I wish you coulda seen it! But long story short, Ivor had an enchanting book that’ll destroy the Witherstorm for good. Jesse enchanted a pickaxe with it, and is up there using it.” She gestures up at the Witherstorm. Lukas glances up too.
“I see.” He shakes his head a few times. “But what does this have to do with-?”
“I was getting there,” Axel cuts in, laughing. “Anyway, while they were there, Ivor fixed them all up with new armour. You saw what Jesse’s wearing, right? Freakin’ awesome .”
“Yeah.” Lukas gestures at Axel and Olivia. “You guys’ too!”
Olivia’s lips quirk. “Thanks.”
Axel shrugs, and holds something out. “Here. Jesse brought this back for you.” He shoves the armour into Lukas’ hands, surprising him with its weight.
“Ivor said there might be no point,” Olivia adds. “But Jesse insisted. And we were bringing some back for Petra too, so..”
Lukas stares at the armour. Gauntlets, shoulder pads, arm and knee and shin guards. Boots. A pair of goggles. In addition to that, a new set of clothes, sturdy - leather jacket, canvas trousers. A lightweight orange shirt, the fabric similar to what he wears now.
“Awh,” he says, startling himself into laughter, though he feels tears pricking his eyes. “You guys. You didn’t have to do this.”
Axel flicks a hand. “Thank Jesse once they’re done,” he deadpans. “Like Olivia said. They’re the one who insisted. Plus, why not? You’re part of the team now.”
Lukas’ heart flutters. “I am?”
Axel raises his brow. “Yeah? After all we’ve done these past couple-a months?” He grins, and extends a fist. “You’re cool with me, Lukas.”
“And me.” Olivia beams. “Listen, once all this is over, we understand if you need to get back to your own life. But just for the record - you’re welcome to hang with us any time.”
Lukas laughs, the sound wispy on his lips. He raises his own fist and bumps Axel’s. “Thanks, guys,” he manages, genuinely. “That means a lot.”
He catches a glimpse of Aiden, Maya, Gill. They stand behind Axel, not far from where the three of them are. Lukas’ smile slips. His Ocelots all wear the same expression. One of disgust.
Some leader you are.
A deafening screech splits open the sky.
Lukas startles up. A dark tendril collapses at his feet. He stares at it, debating whether or not he should give it a kick.
“Woah,” Olivia gasps. “The Witherstorm-”
Is cracking apart.
More purple tentacles drop into the courtyard, shattering the already-shattered walls. Lukas ducks, keeping his eyes up as he dodges the collapsing monster. Is this it? Is it over? His heart begins thudding again. Is Jesse okay?
Something bright hits him. Lukas shields his eyes, squinting, and realizes - it’s the sun . The sun! There hasn’t been a sunny day since the Witherstorm was born. Lukas takes his hand away, mouth falling more and more open. If the sun’s coming out, if all these tentacles are falling around them like debris, then-
Jesse did it.
Lukas brings a hand to his head. Maybe that bravado wasn’t for nothing, after all , he thinks, bewildered, the sun trickling over his skin.
“I don’t believe it,” Aiden mutters. He’s standing not far from Lukas now, gaping upwards. “I don’t believe it!”
“It’s dead!” Gill exclaims. “It’s dead!”
Maya laughs, loudly, freely, and throws her arms around Gill. “It’s dead! It’s over!”
A quiet splash comes from the other side of the court.
Axel and Olivia are already running over to the pool. Jesse surfaces - Jesse - their head breaking the water, gasping in a long, deep breath as they clamber out.
Jesse. They’re alive, they’re not dead! A grin spreads Lukas’ face and before he knows it, he’s running over to them.
“You did it Jesse!” he shouts, screams, as Jesse stumbles to their feet. “You actually did it!”
Jesse does not reply. They shoulder past him, barely acknowledging he’s there to begin with. Lukas’ smile fades. “Jesse?”
In the distance, a faint squealing. An animal squealing.
A pig. Squealing.
“Oh no,” Olivia whispers.
Lukas follows them over, eyebrows knitted tight. He slows to a stop behind Axel. Jesse is on their knees, hunched over something. Someone. Reuben. The pig is writhing, splayed out on one side. Even from here, not fully in his line of sight, Lukas can see him struggling, see him fighting. See him accepting that he can’t fight anymore. Not anymore.
Jesse is whispering to him. Their hand shakes violently as they hold it out to comfort their pig. There is a moment of silence before Reuben dies, under a bright and shining sun. Everyone around them is still. No one says a word. Not even Aiden, who had nearly killed Reuben himself a few months ago.
Lukas steps forwards, mouth dry. “Jesse, I-” He gulps, and kneels beside them. “I am so sorry,” he whispers.
Jesse does not turn. Their shoulders are shaking. Lukas reaches a hand out towards their face, and then realizes he does not know what he wants to do with it, and then places it on their shoulder, gently, gently, as they begin to cry.
💧
Lukas signs up immediately for the rebuilding and recovery effort. He encourages Aiden, Gill and Maya to as well - they’ll need all hands on deck to repair the damage done by the Witherstorm. Lukas joins the building crew - he’s better at that than search-and-rescue by a long margin - and only hours after the death of the Witherstorm he throws himself fully into it.
One day after the death of the Witherstorm: Lukas heads out to collect some resources with a great number of townspeople. One hour before sundown, he hears something galloping towards him, and when he looks up he is met with the snout of a dark brown horse.
“Maria?” Lukas laughs. “I don’t believe it! You found me!” She butts her head into his hand. He pats her. “Hey, girl. Sorry I couldn’t get to you sooner.”
He heads home on her once he delivers everything he’s collected. At home, the other Ocelots are already waiting for him.
“I see you found your horse,” Aiden deadpans, gesturing outside as Lukas steps indoors.
“Yeah, while I was out.” Lukas heads over to the kitchen. “Once I’ve got the time, I’m gonna build her a stable. Nice job patching up here, by the way,” he adds, pointing at the roof. Aiden and Maya had stuck around to repair the house while Gill was out doing some rebuilding in town.
Maya gives a half-smile. Gill shrugs, chewing on a slice of bread. Aiden rolls his eyes. “It’s not hard to rebuild,” he retorts. “Not for people like us.”
Two days after the death of the Witherstorm: Lukas helps Gill patch up the rest of their property. The pair of them work in silence as they build a new spleef arena from scratch, and stack practice dummies along one side of the house.
“I can’t believe it’s over,” Lukas sighs. “It feels like it’s been years, rather than months.”
Gill shrugs. Lukas looks at him with concern. Gill isn’t usually one for silence, but for the past couple of days he’s been nothing but. Maybe just in shock, like everyone else. Lukas’ll be here anyway, whenever he needs.
Three days after the death of the Witherstorm: Lukas spends another day in town to repair various buildings. He sees Jesse here and there, battered and blanking out but still holding their head up as they talk to the no-longer amnesic Gabriel. Lukas waves when he sees them. If Jesse sees him, they smile, albeit weakly, and waves back.
“When d’you think we can get it all done?” Maya asks, as Lukas passes her a slice of cake that night. “I mean, the Witherstorm left a lot of damage. But there’s also a lot of people..”
Lukas nibbles on his own slice of cake. “Maybe in a few days?” He sighs. “I heard Jesse and Gabriel talking - they’re going to hold a ceremony or something once most of it’s been dealt with.”
Maya squirms in her seat. Lukas squints.
“What’s wrong?” he asks.
“Nothing, just..” Maya glances around. She’s nervous . Maya! Nervous! She chews on her lower lip and leans forwards. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk about Jesse,” she tells him in a low voice. “At least - not when Aiden’s around..”
Lukas frowns. “Why not? You guys used to talk about them all the time.” ‘Talk’ is light. More like ‘gossip’.
Maya shakes her head. “He’s been weirdly distant, ever since the courtyard,” she explains. “He refuses to talk about anything that happened. He gets real angry when I try bring it up. Especially if it involves Jesse or their team.”
Lukas sighs. “I’ll talk to him,” he decides.
Maya shakes her head again. “I really don’t think it’s a good idea, Lukas,” she mumbles. The dreariness of her tone sets his teeth on edge, and so he nods, and decides against it.
Four days after the death of the Witherstorm: Lukas is in town again, building. Rebuilding. He takes a break at midday, taking a stroll around the square. He stops short, noticing Jesse standing very still in front of the Reuben memorial. It’s one of the new constructions built: a turquoise banner of him hanging from the top, a plaque of his name near the bottom. Lukas’ expression softens, and walks over to look at it closer.
Jesse is crying. Their cheeks are damp, their eyes are glassy, and despite the gesture Lukas can’t help but think of how pretty they are right now. In such a vulnerable state, even if alone. In a quiet moment of showing the world their cracks.
It takes them at least five minutes before they realize Lukas is standing beside them. Jesse smiles, wiping their face with both hands, and croak, “Everything looking okay?”
Lukas blinks. “Yeah,” he tells them. “Yeah, there’s not much rebuilding left to do now. I mean, heh.” He pats down the back of his head. “The Witherstorm did do some solid damage.. I’m just amazed at how quickly everyone’s working together to patch things up again.”
Jesse rubs their palms over their knuckles. “I’m glad to hear that.” They are still smiling.
Lukas looks at the Reuben banner again. The pig grins back at him. Whoever had been commissioned to make this banner has captured his livelihood perfectly - the way he lived and died smiling, or - as much as an animal can smile, anyway. Lukas has never interacted with Reuben much himself, but he can see how much he’d meant to Jesse. How much Jesse misses him. How they’re smiling yet still crying, or about to, by simply lingering here.
Lukas bows his head. “It all happened so fast,” he mumbles. He sighs, and glances towards Jesse again. “Jesse, I - I want you to know,” he starts, his voice quivering, “no matter what you’re feeling, no matter what you’re going through-” He places a hand on their shoulder. “I’m here for you, if you need me.” They had been there for him. They had saved him. Comforted him. It’s only fair he repays them for that. “Whatever you need,” he vows.
Jesse sniffs, hard. “You know,” they murmur, “even with everything that’s happened in the past, with Endercon and all that..” They smile again, gently, and turn their gaze towards him. “I’m glad you stuck around, Lukas,” they say. “I mean that.”
Lukas nods, sniffing slightly as well. “Thanks, Jesse,” he replies, something unraveling in his chest. Fondness. Sorrow. Gratitude. “I’m glad I stuck by you, too.”
Jesse nods. Then their lips tremble, and in the next moment their arms are around him and Lukas’ eyebrows shoot right up to the sun. But when Jesse begins to cry, vocally, the whimpers in their throat pained, Lukas wraps his arms around them tight, closing his eyes over their shoulder.
Five days after the death of the Witherstorm. Six days. Seven. By that time, everything has been restored somewhat to its prior glory. A ceremony is held indeed, in the square. Lukas turns up early, his Ocelots in tow, and they end up being at the very front of the crowd. Right beneath the stage.
Jesse, Axel, Olivia and Petra follow Gabriel up to the stage, where Magnus and Ivor already stand. Petra, clad in blue-and-gold armour, looks far healthier now - far from the phantom she had been back in the End. Lukas hasn’t had time to catch up with her yet, but she spots him and beams, waving slightly. Lukas waves back, and then waves at Jesse, who has also seen him.
Aiden, behind him, scoffs. “Just ‘cause they’re heroes now,” he mutters, “doesn’t mean they’re any better than the rest of us.”
Maya and Gill fidget. Lukas ignores him.
Gabriel steps forward with a smile, and the crowd simmers down. He clears his throat.
“We all owe a great debt to Jesse and their friends,” he begins, brow crinkling. “But I owe a debt to you people, as well. Which is why there is something I want to tell you. About the Order.”
Lukas frowns. About the Order? Had something else happened while he was gone? None of the people on stage - his friends - none of them had told him anything else about the Order.
Gabriel inhales deeply, glancing once at Jesse, then at Ivor, then back at the crowd. “The Order of the Stone is not what you all believed,” he confesses. “We were frauds. We used the Command Block to falsify our legacy.”
The crowd goes completely rigid. Aiden gives a low whistle.
Well , Lukas thinks, that explains some things. The late Ellegaard, Magnus, Soren - their cowardice. Ivor, on-stage, nods solemnly. Why is he up there again?
“We were no heroes,” Gabriel continues. “We were cowards, who did not want to face the consequences of our actions - not even when our friend - the fifth member of the Order - tried to convince us.” Gabriel looks again at Ivor. This time, the crowd gasps properly. Lukas puts a hand over his mouth. That explains a lot.
“We failed to accept our true nature,” Gabriel goes on. “We failed to see past our own hubris. And we failed you , my friend.” He bows his head at Ivor. “The Order of the Stone have failed the world. It is not right for our name to be celebrated any longer. So it is time for the world to celebrate new heroes - real heroes!” And with that, Gabriel steps to one side, nodding at Jesse, who ducks their head and steps forward in his place. The crowd cheers and cheers.
“Thank you, thank you, everyone!” Jesse laughs, clearing their throat. “I know you think I’m up here because I saved the world or something, but the truth is? I didn’t do it alone. Far from it! I had my friends with me. Olivia, Axel, Petra..” They nod at each of them respectively, and then their eyes find Lukas’. “Lukas,” they finish with a smile.
Lukas smiles back, throat tight. I had my friends with me. And he had Jesse to look up to, too.
Aiden scoffs. Lukas and Maya and Gill all look at him. All three can practically see the storm cloud forming over his head.
“They stood by my side, right from the start,” Jesse continues. “It’s crazy to think that we started out in a treehouse, and now we’ve been to some of the weirdest places in the world. I mean come on, we went to the End! We even made friends with some Endermen! Which is.. kind of a long story.” They duck their head again, their smile nervous.
“Sure it is,” Aiden says under his breath.
“But in the end,” Jesse goes on, “what really mattered was finishing what we set out to do. ‘Cause there’s no way we were gonna let a world this cool get torn apart.” They smile, looking around at everyone, and punch a fist into the air. “We did it!”
This time, the crowd’s cheers are deafening. Lukas claps his hands as hard as he can, unable to wipe the smile off his face even if he wanted to. We did it , he thinks. This is it. This is the end.
And as Jesse places the Witherstorm’s Nether Star atop the beacon behind them, as Gabriel reintroduces the group onstage as the New Order of the Stone, Lukas wipes his eyes, relief crashing onto him from above. Finally.
💧
On the way home, Aiden corners Lukas with a scowl.
“Jesse mentioned you in their speech,” he accuses him. “They mentioned you when they said they didn’t save the world alone. Well, what about us?” Aiden jabs a thumb at himself. “You weren’t the only one there distracting the Witherstorm. They should’ve mentioned us, too.”
Lukas takes a step back, holding up his hands. “To be fair,” he defends himself, “they were talking about their friends . Are you comfortable enough being considered one of Jesse’s friends?”
Aiden’s eyes narrow. “Are you?”
Lukas narrows his eyes too. “Well - yeah, I was with them for all that time. Like I said, they’ve been kind to me. And I helped them when they needed it. Like distracting the Witherstorm.”
Aiden’s lips pull back into a sneer. “What’s so good about Jesse , Lukas? You can’t seriously consider that person your friend .”
“Why not? I like them. They’re nice to me, I’m nice to them - I enjoy their company, I don’t see why that’s an issue?”
Aiden shakes his head angrily. “ I’m your friend,” he snaps. “ We’re your friends.”
Lukas drops his hands, gaping. “I’m allowed to have more than one set of friends,” he says angrily.
“What do you even see in them?” Aiden kicks the ground, stamping on a patch of tall grass. “They’re just a bunch of nobodies who managed to save the world. Don’t you remember at Endercon? They were awful at building. They’ve never been good at anything.”
Lukas laughs before he can help himself, even though he knows it will irritate Aiden even more. “What the hell are you saying?” He shakes his head. “Endercon, building - none of that matters, Aiden! They’re the ones who saved the world! Everyone is safe and well again because of them , and you wanna, what - talk about Endercon?”
Aiden grits his teeth so hard that Lukas swears he’s going to break a tooth. “Fuck you,” he spits. “After all this time, you still simper for them. You still treat them like they’re worth more than me. Than us .”
“What? Aiden-” Lukas tries, but he’s already marching away. He walks quickly, intending to follow him, but stops, remembering what Maya had told him the other day. He refuses to talk about anything that happened. He gets real angry when I try bring it up, especially if it involves Jesse or their team. Lukas sighs, hope flickering out of him. So much for Aiden being kinder to Jesse and the New Order.
Maya clicks her tongue, appearing to Lukas’ right. “Told you,” she drawls.
Gill appears beside her, expressionless. “He’s getting pushier,” he observes. “Just ‘cause the Dead Ends - I mean, the New Order, just because they’re now world-renown..”
Lukas turns slowly towards the both of them. “You guys surely don’t agree with him, right?” he asks, breath hitching.
Maya blinks. “Which part?”
Lukas’ expression wavers. “I dunno. All of it?”
Maya shrugs, cocking her head to one side. “I mean.. I guess it would’ve been nice to get some recognition as a team, at least. But, like, it’s no big deal.”
Gill purses his lips. “Let’s just go home,” he sighs. “It’s been a day.”
“Yeah, agreed .”
Maya and Gill walk on ahead. They’re talking about something to each other, halfway across the plains, by the time Lukas finally decides to catch up.
💧
Hours become days become weeks. Lukas looks at the Ocelots, his Ocelots, and wonders what he could’ve done better. They’re not talking much - not about serious things, anyway - and he’s been busy enough with further reconstruction work that he has little time to spend either. He busies himself with designing Maria a stable, with taking her out on evening rides. Maya and Gill take to practicing combat everyday. As for Aiden, Lukas has no idea what he’s doing in his spare time. Only that he’s stopped reading as much. Only that he’s training way more instead.
Lukas worries all the same. It scares him - scares him far too much how he’s starting to feel their relationships fray. He can feel the other three drifting from him. Sure, there have been conflicts in the past. Sure, maybe the other Ocelots don’t totally agree with him on every little thing. But none of those conflicts have lasted days. None have lasted weeks . Worst of all, there hadn’t even been a conflict. Not between all four of them, anyhow. And when he tries to bring it up, or even bring up the notion of hanging out - playing spleef, mining, even building for god’s sake - they all make excuses and leave before he can do anything else.
The New Order still go on adventures, though. Petra is in and out of town, so nothing’s new there. But lately Lukas finds himself seeking out her company for the sake of it, rather than for favours. She usually finds him first.
“We’re going to a desert in a couple of weeks,” she tells him, a few weeks after the death of the Witherstorm. “Ivor’s managed to find a temple.” She rolls her eyes. “ I keep telling Jesse that we shouldn’t trust anything he says too soon. But.. well, I have to admit - he is knowledgeable on these kinds of things.”
“That sounds cool,” Lukas replies. “You guys stay safe out there, okay?”
Petra smiles, and brings a hand to the back of her neck. “Actually,” she laughs, “Jesse wanted me to ask you if you’d wanna come. I mean, you’re a part of the team now, so it seemed fair to at least offer.”
Lukas laughs himself, bringing a hand to his chest. Jesse wants him to join on this adventure? “Wow. That’s - that’s really kind of them. But..” He pats himself a little. “I’ve got a lot of work to do here. Some of the nearby towns still need volunteers for rebuilding. But thanks, though, Petra. And thank Jesse for me, too.” He pauses, throat clogging up, but asks the question anyway: “How’ve they been doing, anyway? I haven’t seen them in a while.”
Petra’s smile fades. “Well.. you know Jesse.” She tucks her legs in, gazing into the foliage of the tree they’re sitting under. “They’re adjusting to, well - being a leader, I guess. But they’re holding up alright. Distracting themself.”
Lukas nods. “I should meet up with them some time,” he murmurs. “Would be good to catch up face-to-face.”
“Welp-” Petra hoists herself up. “I’ll let them know, okay? And, again, Lukas-” She turns to lend him a hand. “You’re always welcome to join on adventures. We like having you around.”
Lukas smiles, shy, and grabs onto her hand. “I’ll see when I have time,” he promises, unsure of what else to say.
💧
Some days he’s totally free of all responsibilities. On those days he stays at home and sketches idly in an empty book, the way he used to when coming up with new build ideas. He never finds it in himself to expand on any of the ones he commits to paper, or commit any at all on days where his mind is particularly fogged up. On those days, he goes out and walks for a bit, trying to clear his head.
One month after the death of the Witherstorm, Lukas struts out of his room, hands buried deep in his pockets as he makes his way out of the house. The sky is cloudy today, the air slightly chilly, but not in an unpleasant way. He goes first to pat Maria, and feeds her. Then he goes to check on the other Ocelots, who are training. Of course. All they do lately is train in combat.
Maya and Gill are sparring in the mini arena, eyebrows knitted together as they swing their iron swords. Be careful , Lukas wants to call out, fear jolting through him a little. He touches his right forearm, where the scar is, stark and leering. And that had been with stone .
Aiden glances up from where he stands, tracing the edge of the arena. “Lukas,” he greets him. “Come to join us?”
He asks Lukas this every time. And every time Lukas will consider the possibility, because it’s never too late to join, right? He considers it now, just for a moment, and then his eyes meet Aiden’s. The coldness in his old friend’s eyes sends another jolt of fear through him, compelling him to shake his head.
“Maybe later,” Lukas replies. “I’m off on a walk. I’ve been cooped up inside too long - gotta stretch my legs.” He smiles. “You guys be careful, now,” he calls, as he heads off.
Aiden doesn’t smile back.
💧
Two months after the death of the Witherstorm, Lukas wakes up to a slightly-breezy day, the sun shining through patches of clouds. He heads over to the kitchen, grabbing his jacket on the way. Aiden, Gill and Maya are sitting together at the table, eating in silence.
“Great weather today,” Lukas says cheerily. “Guys, we should play some spleef. Look at how great that sun is! We can’t let sunshine that good go to waste.”
Aiden looks up. Ever since Jesse killed the Witherstorm the darkness in his eyes has lingered, becoming perpetual at this point. “ We were actually going to head out today,” he says dryly. “There’s this convention happening. Apparently they’re selling enchantment books.”
“Oh!” Lukas sits down next to him. It takes everything in him not to frown - none of them had told him about a convention. “That’s cool, guys. We can play spleef another time. Plus, I’m free for the day if you want me to tag along.”
Maya exhales through her nose. “Sorry, Lukas,” she mumbles, not meeting his gaze. “You need tickets for it, and they’re sold out.”
“We were gonna get you one-” Gill starts but Aiden elbows him hard in the side. “Uh, I mean - yeah, sorry, Lukas. They ran out of tickets.”
Lukas shifts his gaze between him and Aiden. “Don’t treat Gill like that,” he tells the latter, cross.
Aiden rolls his eyes. “Whatever. Anyway, we’re going to head out once we’re done with breakfast,” he continues.
Lukas turns the apple in his hand. “How long will you be gone?”
“Hard to say.” Maya wipes her hands on her trousers. “It’s a three hour walk. So maybe tomorrow morning?”
Lukas nods and bites into his apple. “Okay. Well - you guys just stay safe and have fun, okay? Tell me all about it once you get back.”
Maya points her gaze downwards. “Mhm.”
Aiden stands abruptly, and heads towards the door. “Let’s go, you two.” He doesn’t so much as look at Lukas as he heads out and away, Gill and Maya trailing after him. The pair of them look at him, for just a second, but it’s still long enough for Lukas to see the discomfort in their eyes.
He sits, alone, at the kitchen table, even long after he’s finished his breakfast.
They don’t tell him about it when they get back.
💧
Four months and two weeks after the death of the Witherstorm, Lukas gets ready to meet Jesse in town for a solitary afternoon walk. Jesse is the one Lukas sees most often, after Petra - sure, they’re busy with new adventures around the world, with leading the New Order. But they write to him sometimes, often doing so to invite him out somewhere, and it flatters Lukas, just how much they want his company. Because on most days, he wants theirs too. So he makes time, at least once a week while they’re still in town and not travelling, spending it with Jesse. And the rest of the New Order too, if he’s lucky.
He is just coming out of his room when Aiden skirts into the hallway, arms folded. “Hey, Lukas,” he greets, his tone of exasperation. “Maya and Gill are up for spleef today. You wanna join? The sun’s real nice out.”
Lukas smiles awkwardly. “Ah.” He pulls on his lapels and swallows. Aiden’s already scowling by the time he says back, “Sorry, Aiden. I’ve already got plans. I thought I told you three already that I’m going out today-?”
Aiden rolls his eyes. “Did you?”
Lukas shrugs. “I left a note two days ago. There, see? I pinned it to the wall.” He gestures at it, then shakes his head. “Sorry anyway. You three go ahead and play. I’ll be back by sundown.”
Aiden crosses his arms, jerking back from Lukas as if he were carrying a contagious disease. “What is wrong with you, man? You’re never free anymore. All you ever do is go out and help nobodies and hang out with the Order of the Dead Ends.”
Lukas stops, two steps away from the front door. “Don’t talk like that,” he whispers, not turning.
“Why not?” Aiden’s hand is on his shoulder, gripping it tight. “They didn’t start as mighty heroes, Lou. They started out as bottom-of-the-chain nobodies. Soon as they take you under their wing and save the world you’re acting like they’re gods to be worshipped.”
Lukas shakes off Aiden’s hand, and glances back. “You called me Lou,” he says.
Aiden blinks and steps away. “What?”
Lukas turns fully now, fingers clenching over his trouser pockets. “You called me Lou,” he repeats. “When was the last time you called me that?”
“I-” Aiden’s face goes pale. Then he growls, and shakes his head. “See, this is exactly what I mean. We’ve barely been spending time together - you’re barely home and I barely get to see you at all.”
This time Lukas folds his arms. “I’ve been trying to spend time with you guys, Aiden,” he sighs. “Please - don’t act like I’ve done nothing. I’ve asked you guys loads of times, remember? Spleef? Mining? Building something?”
Aiden is shaking his head. “You never ask us at convenient times,” he snaps. “You always ask when we’ve already got plans-”
“That’s what you’re doing to me right now,” Lukas retorts. “Aiden - at least I told you guys that I’m going out. You don’t tell me anything anymore. So is this really my fault?”
Aiden gnashes his teeth. “What,” he seethes, “do you see in them? That nobody - Jesse -” He spits out their name with so much venom, Lukas recoils. “This is because of Jesse, isn’t it? Oh, Lukas.” Aiden laughs, cruelly, jaw twitching. “One person treats you kindly and you start trotting after them like you’re their loyal fucking pet . Fucking pathetic.” He gestures at himself. “What about us? What about me? After all I did for you - after everything we’ve done together - why - can’t - you just-” He snakes his hands into his hair, frustration coming out as wordless noise. “You know what? Fuck it. Just go. You wanna lick their boots so badly? Go.” He spins on his heel. “I never thought I’d ever see the day where you stoop to their level, Lukas. I should’ve known better.”
Then Aiden is gone again, leaving Lukas alone in the threshold.
Something inside him cracks. Something else stings.
At some point he’s realized that he’s no longer in his house, and outside the Order Hall. It’s still under construction, but definitely where Jesse would be. Sure enough, they walk out, unarmoured, their eyes lighting up as they see Lukas.
“Lukas! Hey!” Jesse skips down the steps with their arms outstretched. Lukas accepts the hug quietly, still too stunned to smile.
“Hey, Jesse,” he replies weakly.
“How’ve you been, man? It’s been too long.” Then Jesse’s smile slips. “Lukas? You okay?”
Lukas realizes he’s blanking out. Aiden’s words come back to him as they always do, always have. One person treats you kindly and you start trotting after them like you’re their loyal fucking pet . Fucking pathetic.
But for some reason he smiles instead, and shakes his head. “I’m okay,” he lies. “I’m okay.”
💧
Six months after the death of the Witherstorm, Lukas comes home one day to see Gill and Maya packing.
He drops the apples he’d bundled up on the way back from town. “Maya? Gill?” Neither of them look at him, but he can see the weariness in both their eyes as they stuff their pockets with resources and food.
“What are you guys doing?” Lukas whispers, heart in his throat.
At this, Maya stands, slapping closed a chest. “Sorry, Lukas,” she mumbles, lips trembling. Lukas waits for her to elaborate. She does not.
“‘Sorry’? What are you sorry about?” Lukas swallows, slowly shaking his head. “What’s going on-?”
Gill stands at the same time Aiden walks into the hall. His stormy expression has become even stormier. A hurricane of scorn.
“Hello, Lukas,” he says quietly.
Lukas straightens. “Aiden. What’s going on here?” He looks from Aiden to Gill, whose head is bowed, and then to Maya, whose eyes are glazed over. “Why are you guys packing? Is it for another trip you have to take?” Another trip you didn’t tell me about? he thinks bitterly, though he omits it for the sake of getting a direct answer.
Aiden shrugs nonchalantly, but this only makes Lukas’ heart drum harder. “I guess you could call it that,” he drawls, a mirthless smirk appearing on his lips. “But I’ll spare you the details. We’re leaving.”
Lukas blinks. “‘ We’ ?”
Aiden rolls his eyes. “Me, Gill and Maya? We?”
Lukas shakes his head. “For how long?” he asks, light-headed.
“How long? Lukas - we’re leaving leaving. We’re leaving for good.” Aiden strides up to him, chin raised high. Lukas looks up. There is not a shred of remorse in his eyes. Not a single bit.
Lukas staggers back before he can steady himself. “You’re leaving?” he repeats.
Aiden rolls his eyes again. “Don’t be so pathetic about it. Looks shit on you.” He crosses his arms, and continues, “You’re not someone we want to be around, Lukas. Not anymore.” His scowl deepens. “Not since you cozied up with them .”
Lukas knows exactly who Aiden’s talking about. A sliver of rage snakes through him like heat.
“Oh,” he says, with as much contempt as he can muster without betraying himself, “I see. This is about Jesse .”
“Face it, Lukas.” Aiden lazily spreads his hands. “You’ve always cared about them more than you have us . You showing your true colours this past year has only proven it further.” He tosses his head back, lip curling. “We don’t want a leader who doesn’t care about his own team - who would abandon his own team for the sake of another. You’re just keeping us around so you can still feel in control of something. So you can still feel special .”
Lukas shakes his head, even though he knows it’s futile. “That’s not true and you know it,” he snarls. He looks back at Gill and Maya. They both look miserable . “You two can’t seriously be going with him,” he splutters, pleading.
Gill shrugs. “We are going with him,” he says quietly. “We’re not staying.”
“No.” Lukas lets out a shaky breath. “No. Guys - come on. You can’t jump to conclusions this quickly! Can’t we just talk about this? It could do us all some good, we’ve barely been talking at all these past few months-”
“No,” Aiden snaps. “We’re done here, Lukas. We’re done being unimportant to you. Now move.”
He doesn’t wait for Lukas to move, instead shoving him aside like he weighs nothing and ducking out of the door. Lukas gasps, cringing at his own heavy breathing, backed into the wall as Gill and Maya follow suit.
“No. Guys, come on,” he manages, tumbling through the threshold. “ Come on , you can’t just leave like this - where are you even going to go?”
“Anywhere,” Aiden calls. “As long as it’s far, far away from you.” He sucks on his teeth with a smirk. “I hear the Order of the Dead Ends are travelling the world in search of treasure. Maybe we’ll ramp up the competition a bit. Beat them at their own game.”
Lukas notices them all still wearing their jackets. Black leather. Ocelot face. “What about the Ocelots?” he breathes. “What about Endercon?” What about the past fourteen years? What about everything?
Aiden smiles triumphantly, as if he’d been waiting for Lukas to ask these very questions. “I’ve always wanted to tell you,” he croons, shedding his leather jacket, “‘Ocelots’ is a stupid name. ‘Blaze Rods’ - my gang , if that wasn’t clear - is far cooler.”
He tosses the jacket to the grass, and gestures at Maya and Gill. The pair of them strip off their jackets too, expressions blank. Lukas grabs onto the fencepost outside to stop himself from collapsing.
“Guys,” he whispers. “Gill. Maya. Aiden .”
Aiden produces a flint and steel, eyes cold, unforgiving. “This is what you’re worth to us,” he sneers. “This is what you’re worth at all.”
He strikes the flint against the steel, the steel against the flint, and drops it to the grass. The pile of Ocelot jackets catches flame immediately, licking around the design with the same hunger Aiden holds in his eyes.
“Goodbye, Lukas,” he scorns, turning on his heel. “I better not see you ever again.”
Maya and Gill slink after him. Lukas watches them go, still watching even after they’ve become mere specks in the night. The fire burns hotter under the moonless sky. Lukas only realizes that he’s crying when the tears drip onto his hand, scalding his ice-cold skin.
💧
Lukas does not leave the house - his house, his own house now - for a week. When he’s not sitting in his room, his bedroom, he’s shuffling around the kitchen and the other rooms, the empty rooms, tidying up the few things that’s been left for him to tidy. He thinks, a lot of the time, staring up at the ceiling as the sun through his window rises and falls and disappears without a trace.
Had he been this blind? Had the Ocelots - the - had the others really started to hate his company? Had he really been selfish, keeping them around, just to feel important? The questions zip into his mind one after the other, clamouring and clambering over each other and Lukas can’t grip onto even one of them for long before it leads him somewhere else. It hadn’t always been like this, had it? They had been friends - they had to have been - at least for the first few years - building together. Spleef. Talking under the sun. What had it all been for, if they hadn’t been friends? Their first win together. The rest of their wins. Everything. Everything else. You’ll always be our friend, Lukas. No matter what.
Maya’s confidence. Gill’s kindness. Aiden’s tough exterior. The note he had left on Lukas’ fountain design. You’re a great person. You’re a great friend. Had he been lying at the time? Had he always been lying? Or had it been after Jesse’s team joined the building competition, souring the waters, another trail for Aiden to stray away on? Of course. At every mention, every shutdown of his mocking, Aiden only grew stormier, stonier, colder - was the glory really all that important to him? Everything I do is for this team. Everything I do is for the Ocelots. Everything Lukas does is for them, too. Everything Lukas had ever done is for them. Even if he doesn’t always agree with everything they believe, even if he never joins in on their taunting. Even if they make his insides curdle with hurt. Even if. Even though. The hopelessness cloaking him ever since the Witherstorm returns with a rage - rage, rages into his skin, all the fear that had been. All the not knowing. All the crash and burn bubbling up from underneath and exploding from his lips in the End. All the resolve sharpening him a thousand times over, riding Maria into the depths of the unknown. All the relief like rain during sunshine, pouring down once he’d found them again.
💧
Had any of it been worth it?
If it weren’t for me that day, you wouldn’t have even had a team.
You would never have been able to win all those times. That was ‘cause of me .
This is your fault. This could’ve been another good victory. But you had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?
Would be helpful if you were stronger. You call yourself our leader, but look at you. What are you gonna do if someone, someday, threatens you with iron or gold? Or even diamond, if you’re lucky? ‘Cause I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass.
It’s okay, man. You don’t have to be nice to them if you don’t like them. I honestly thought you were pretending you couldn’t hear.
Some leader you are. What kind of leader would put the wellbeing of the enemy over their own people? If you weren’t so damn good at building, at having your little friend get you all that rare stuff - maybe..
If you really wanted to, you could’ve stopped me, But you didn’t. So don’t go pointing any more fingers at me.
We needed you. We needed you, and what do you do? Exactly what I expected. You abandoned us. You left us for them. After all these years, you still value them over your own fucking team.
What’s so good about Jesse? You can’t seriously consider that person your friend . Fuck you. After all this time, you still simper for them. You still treat them like they’re worth more than me. Than us .
You wanna lick their boots so badly? Go. I never thought I’d ever see the day where you stoop to their level. I should’ve known better.
We don’t want a leader who doesn’t care about his own team - who would abandon his own team for the sake of another. You’re just keeping us around so you can still feel in control of something. So you can still feel special.
This is what you’re worth to us. This is what you’re worth at all.
Lukas turns and buries his face in his pillow and screams.
💧
Lukas thinks of many things.
He thinks about Endercon. He’s never going to attend one of those ever again, not after this. He’s back at square one. No team, no nothing, even with a belt stuffed full of wins. None of that even remotely matters anymore.
He thinks about this house. How Aiden had announced that he and Maya and Gill were moving in. How the four of them had expanded it together. How Aiden had announced they were leaving. Leaving him behind.
He thinks about the flint and steel outside, topping a pile of foul-smelling ash. He thinks about the spleef arena. The training area. Both deserted. Both untouched.
He thinks about taking the flint and steel. About torching this house and leaving it behind. He thinks about staying inside as it burns, sitting still under his covers. About lighting it from within the house. From within his room. From within his very bed.
He thinks about Maria, and how scared she would be, how confused, if he did either of those things.
He thinks about Jesse - about them and Petra and Axel and Olivia and all the hours he’d been stuck with them. About the hours he willingly stuck to them. About their faces, their fear, their confusion, if they showed up to his door one day to find embers in its place. About how they would mourn. About how Jesse would mourn. About how they would cry, having lost their pig and now a friend. A friend. Lukas is their friend.
He thinks about Aiden. How he would laugh if Lukas let down his guard. About how he would make a throne out of the ruins of his body. About Maya and Gill, reluctant as they are, joining Aiden, perhaps. Perhaps to laugh. Or perhaps to say goodbye.
He thinks about the note Aiden had left him. The secret message. The words that might have once meant something to their writer but no longer ring true. He thinks about burning that sketch. He thinks about keeping it as testament to the past. As proof that what they had was real, at some point. He thinks about where the note is right now, stuffed at the bottom of the chest beside his bed. Just within reach. Just.
Then he thinks about Jesse again. About the softness of their features, their hair, their eyes. About how someone glowing as softly as them, someone with the perseverance of a withering rose, about how someone like them had been the one to save the world. To pay the price for the sake of everyone else. Sometimes he will look into their eyes, see the weariness and fog, and wonder if they had even wanted such glory in the first place. And wonder if they know just how much he admires them.
Lukas thinks of everything in the world. Everything else leads right back to where he started. And then it leads him into shelter, a dark place alone, where he huddles and hugs his pain close to his chest.
💧
Lukas isn’t entirely sure whenabouts the notion of travelling hits him. Somewhere between the hollow cycle of hurt, anger, guilt and tears, it must have slipped into his thought process. But the moment it whispers into his ear he finds himself packing, securing Maria’s equipment for an endless journey ahead. He does not disturb the pile of ash in the front garden. He does not dare to look at it.
He writes to Jesse about his plans, hoping they’ll tell the others on his behalf. Lukas isn’t sure how long he’s going to be away, but he tucks a pair of leather-bound books into his bag to keep track of his travels. Anywhere, he thinks, is better than here. In the very place all of his pain stems from. He could use a change of scenery, and besides - he should get his legs moving again. It’s better than spending all day every day alone in his room and moping. Even if moping is all he wants to do.
The night before he sets out, Lukas empties the chest in his bedroom, and pauses when he reaches the bottom of the pile. He takes out the armour Axel had given him, given as a gift from Jesse, and stares at it. He’s barely thought about it ever since the death of the Witherstorm. He hadn’t the time to think about the gesture. In complete truth, he’d simply stuffed the armour set into his chest and forgot about it. Lukas looks over it now, and realizes he hadn’t even given time to try it on.
He puts the set on his bed, hands finding his jacket lapels. I haven’t even thanked Jesse for the armour yet. His fists clench. Jesse. Having known Lukas for barely a tenth of the time Aiden had known him, yet still..
Lukas sheds his Ocelot jacket. He sheds his t-shirt and his jeans. He changes into the new armour, tightening the guards, fixing the goggles. It all fits perfectly.
💧
Lukas is away from home for four months, one week and three days.
The first week, he finds himself in a jungle. The trees are well over the size of skyscrapers, fluttering vines snaking down the trunks and foliage. For the most part he does not encounter any other humans living in the area - no major civilizations, at least. Just the occasional lone wanderer or fellow traveller. Lukas spends the whole of the first day sketching the landscape into the blue-backed book he’s brought. He spends the next collecting cocoa beans for cookies.
The second to third weeks are spent in a desert. The sun is perpetually high in the sky, unrelenting even in the twilight hours as Lukas treks through heaps of scalding sand. He crosses the paths of a few villages - small groups of people with lots to trade and an overwhelming eagerness to provide him hospitality. Lukas ends up trading his iron sword for a bow at some point, though he has no arrows to shoot it with. He tests the string. He slings it over his back. A bow is far lighter than a sword by any rate, and does just as much damage if it has the right enchantments. He sketches the villages in the shelter of the communal well, from which Maria drinks.
The dregs of the first month and the first half of the second, Lukas emerges from one forest to another. The differing trees are the only indication that the biome has changed at all - common oak to striped white birch to smooth unblemished spruce to strong dark oak to drooping low-branched acacia. Some of these forests are set beside sandy shores, others standing proud atop jagged mountain peaks, and others still at the feet of gravel hills entwined with cold, dark ocean. He collects some flint, hunts down some chickens, makes some arrows for his untouched bow. In the dark forest, Lukas finds a small, well-lit clearing and spends two days straight making practice targets. He trains, shooting arrow after arrow until he can hit bullseye every time. It doesn’t even matter to him how raw his fingers are from pulling the string. He’ll take it over a sword any day.
Lukas lingers at one of the birch forest towns: Lily Vale, named after the flowers that dot the landscape. It’s the biggest human civilization he’s seen since home. As he wanders around the markets and suburbs, seeing its people chatting so comfortably to each other, he can’t help but notice the aching of his heart, now that three of his most important connections have been severed, or have severed from him, leaving him to his remote island of confusion and fog.
The last half of the second month is spent in a snowy taiga overshadowed by tall sheets of jagged ice. Despite the cold, and the constant snowfall, it is beautiful, and very much a contrast to the weather from where Lukas comes. He rarely ever sees snow. Something about the endless stretches of white is incredibly calming to the eye.
Lukas stops by a solitary town in the middle of the taiga, ominously named the Blue Valley. He’s pretty sure the ‘blue’ part is referring to the ice peaks. The people here aren’t blue though, not in personality at least, and they point him towards somewhere he can buy more food and supplies. For a fair amount of iron and gold ingots, Lukas buys half a stack of apples, some wheat, more arrows and even a set of iron horse armour for Maria. He thanks the vendors as he leaves, as he always does, and reorganizes his inventory.
As he fixes the horse armour over Maria, Lukas notices a group of younger people in the suspended field opposite him. They’re grinning and laughing and all of them have shovels. The tallest of them dives towards the one in a jumpsuit, smashing their shovel into the snow beneath the latter’s feet. They fall through the floor with a whine. The tallest one punches the air in triumph, then is falling as well, unsuspecting as the dark-skinned one behind them digs a hole under their feet.
Spleef , Lukas realizes. They’re playing spleef.
Lukas has never played spleef with snow before. Back home, the temperature is never cold enough to warrant for snow, so he had managed with leaves instead. Back when he used to play spleef at all. Back when he used to have a life sewn tightly together.
Where could Aiden be now? Aiden, Maya, Gill - he’s tried his best not to think about them whilst out on this journey. Every time he does another wave of sorrow washes over him, so strong that he would buckle, salt scattered across the wound as he nurses his heart back to health. He’d come out on this journey to begin with to get away from what happened. To give himself some reason, any reason, to keep going. But no. After all he’s done with them, after all he’s given up for them - it is still him who needed them more. It is still him who is weak. Who is soft. Because out here, in the middle of nowhere, he still thinks and is reminded of his old friends, wherever they may be. Even if their minds wander far off from the topic of him. Yet here he is, seeing them in everything that he does.
What is he doing?
Why has he run all the way out here in the first place? Running isn’t going to help him work with what happened. Running isn’t going to erase the past fourteen, fifteen years. Running is cowardice. The only way Lukas can really come to terms with his pain is to stare it right in the eyes, even if it hurts him more to do so, because it will hurt for far longer if he leaves it unbridled, untouched. He knows this. He knows. Yet he still cannot think about his Ocelots - no longer his - without the memories splitting his head open. He cannot hold onto the fact that they had just tossed years - years to the side, having cut him to pieces and left him to bleed out. Him having done so much for them. Yet they had still strayed. Lukas cradling the ashes of their time between his fingers, slipping, blown off into the wind.
What does it matter now? Aiden has already left. Aiden is already gone, dragging Gill and Maya with him: a fact he needs to accept. He can hurt as much as he wants, but no amount of hurt will bring them back. No amount of hurt will patch up what they used to have. Some days Lukas wishes he had pushed harder back then, when the foundations of them were already beginning to crack. He had been blind. He hadn’t caught on in time. And now they’re gone. Now he’s alone again.
But he still has the New Order.
He still has his new friends - friendships he had made out of necessity in the most desperate of times, but friendships that he cherishes nonetheless. Axel, tough-hearted but kind - protective, even if he had come across as a jerk to begin with. Olivia, smart and inventive, insightful on every little thing. Petra, resourceful and strong, tenacious, refusing to let herself fall even if she must breathe her last to stay up. And Jesse. Oh, Jesse. The pillar against whom everyone leaned, the beacon of hope keeping everyone upright. The humble, humble person whose life has never once been dedicated to saving their own ass. Lukas has to go back. Even with what’s happened to his old friendships, he can’t let these new ones go to waste. He’ll throw all of his effort into them if he has to - a hundred times or more. It’s what they deserve, for wanting him around, even with all the grief the Ocelots had given them.
Lukas mounts Maria in one easy hop, drawing in a deep breath. The moment he lets it out, he snaps her reins, and steers her out of the beautiful Blue Valley.
The third and fourth months, the one week and three days after that, Lukas rides home.
💧
He does not end up torching the Ocelots’ old house. But he does tear it down, three days after his return. The pile that had been at his front door is gone now, as is the flint and steel. He’s glad for that. This way he doesn’t have to deal with it himself. Lukas makes a temporary shelter outside near Maria’s stable, and gets to designing a new ranch. Something similar to what he had before Aiden and Maya and Gill, but adjusted slightly, what with the knowledge he possesses now.
Lukas starts by filling up the spleef arena. There’s no point in it anymore, now that he has no one to play with, and no one whom he really wants to teach. He replaces the practice dummies with the targets he’d made, placing a chest nearby to store practice bows and arrows. He works on the house in the daytime, powering the lights inside with daylight sensors, giving himself a more spacious kitchen and library, adding extra windows where there previously had been none. He checks his mailbox as well. There’s only one letter, and it’s from Jesse, dated back a few months - just a note wishing him well on his travels, with a crude drawing of him smiling as he rides horseback into the sunset. For the first time in weeks, maybe months, Lukas smiles, and tucks the letter into his bookcase. He should visit Jesse soon. It would help.
Two and a half weeks after his return, Lukas sets off towards town. He decides to go by foot, letting Maria rest up a bit, and besides - he might as well enjoy what used to be. Or at least try to.
It looks beautiful here, though not much has changed. The streets are definitely more vibrant, more colourful, and - moreover - the Order Hall is no longer under construction. It now stands tall and proud - the centrepiece of this place. Lukas hasn’t seen any of the New Order yet - maybe they’re inside - so he decides to go in to check.
He climbs the steps, smiling at the polished iron walls as he makes his way down the hallway and into the treasure room. Empty - but only of his friends. Jesse and them have been busy - where there used to be only a couple of items on display, the room is now lined with precious, rare items. Diamond, prismarine, lapis, a regular Nether Star - and stacked against the dome is a lineup of impressive armour sets. Lukas walks around the pedestals, admiring each item, and lingers when he reaches the Witherstorm’s Nether Star. Despite everything, the Witherstorm is still the reason he was tied up with the New Order in the first place. And despite everything else, he is immensely grateful that he had.
Footsteps sound from behind Lukas. He turns slightly, about to open his mouth, but Petra gets there first.
“Woah, Lukas? I don’t believe it! You’re back!” she exclaims, grinning. Lukas realizes that he is grinning too, as he sees her, Jesse following close behind.
“Hey, guys!” Lukas descends the steps. “Just admiring the treasures you have in here. Pretty cool stuff.”
Petra smirks. “Yeah, no doubt about it.”
Jesse moves jerkily towards Lukas when he gets to the bottom of the steps. They’re blinking quickly. Shyly? No, quickly. “H-Hey, Lukas!” they stammer. “Great to see you!”
Lukas thinks about hugging them. “It's been a while,” he says instead, raising his shoulders close to his face. “I really missed you guys.”
“Yeah, same here!” Petra nods. “You were gone for ages. Was it a good trip, at least?”
“Oh, yeah,” Lukas replies. “I saw a lot of cool stuff. Nothing as cool as the stuff in here , of course,” he adds hastily. “You have so many other treasures. Boy, you’ve sure been busy.”
Something turquoise catches his eye. Lukas’ eyes widen as he sees the Reuben banner tacked to the wall. How had he not seen this when he came in? He walks over to it, mouth dropping a little.
“Oh,” he breathes. Lukas looks towards Jesse, empathy welling up in his chest. “For a moment, I..” He decides not to finish that sentence and shakes his head. “How are you doing?” he asks instead.
Jesse glances down, smoothing one hand over their arm. “I still feel guilty about it,” they confess. “Every time I see another pit, all I can think about is - is how Reuben died because I put him in danger.” They blow out a breath, stilling.
Petra lays a hand on their shoulder. “He didn’t die in some accident, Jess,” she says. “He sacrificed himself. He was a hero.”
Lukas nods. “He saved us all,” he says too. “Just as much as you did.”
Jesse nods, and shrugs slowly. “Doesn’t make me feel any less guilty, though,” they mumble.
Lukas himself is starting to know the feeling. He glances back at the banner, at the grinning pig face on it.
“Oh, by the way.” Petra clears her throat. “Not to ruin the mood, but.. we were hoping to see you soon, Lukas, to ask you something.”
Lukas swivels around fully. “Yeah?”
Petra’s smile has become more of a frown now. She brings her hands to her head and takes off her helmet. “Yeah. D’you know what’s been going on with Aiden, by any chance?”
The name spikes ice through Lukas.
Aiden. How he had left. How Maya and Gill had left, too. How they had shed their Ocelot jackets and names and burned both to the ground.
Lukas shivers. Already? He’s hearing about Aiden again so soon? He’s just gotten back from a weak attempt at closure. His chest squeezes painfully. He should’ve known it wouldn’t be long before his old friend’s worming back into his life.
“Woah, Lukas.” Petra grabs his shoulder. “You okay? Man, you went really pale there for a sec.”
Lukas gets a grip on himself and shakes his head. “Sorry,” he blurts, on reflex. “Aiden - uh.. well..” He cringes. “It’s complicated. Why d’you ask?”
Petra and Jesse look at each other. “Well,” begins Petra, “we saw him while we were out earlier. He was really worked up. Like, I mean - really worked up. More so than usual.”
“Yeah,” Jesse agrees. “Man, I dunno what’s wrong with him, but he’s freaking me out.”
Lukas’ mouth runs dry. I hear the Order of the Dead Ends are travelling the world in search of treasure. Maybe we’ll ramp up the competition a bit. Beat them at their own game.
Why did he think this would be easy? He should’ve known he would hear about Aiden again.
“Also.” Jesse wrinkles their nose. “The ‘Blaze Rods’? What a stupid ass name.”
The dots connect in his head. Oh. Jesse already knows, to some extent. Lukas laughs before he can stifle it. “So you’ve heard the news,” he says, sour.
“Mhm.” Jesse’s brows crinkle, and they gaze at Lukas sadly. “I’m sorry to hear what happened,” they tell him. “I mean, you guys were friends for years..”
Lukas tries to smile. He can’t. So he shrugs, and looks away, blinking the tears out of his eyes. “It’s alright,” he sighs. “I’m working through it.” Somewhat. Somewhat not. He wonders about running from the Hall. He decides not to. He’s done enough running already.
Jesse nods. “But, anyway - we were there for this rare treasure,” they continue. “He was demanding that we give it to him.”
Lukas squints. “And did you..?”
“No! Of course not.” Petra rolls her eyes. “As if we’d let the likes of Aiden and the Blaze Rods get their hands on something like that.”
Lukas glances between the two of them. “What’d you find that got him so excited, anyway?” he inquires.
Jesse puts a hand into their armour, and pulls out a flint and steel. “Check it out.”
Lukas’ eyes widen and he steps closer to get a better look. The flint and steel burns a bright blue - enchanted, maybe? But that’s not possible - you can’t enchant a flint and steel. Right? “Wow,” he remarks. “What a weird glow.”
“Yeah, I know,” replies Jesse. “I'm supposed to show it to-”
“You found it!”
The three of them jump. “Woah!” Lukas exclaims, snapping around to stare at the newcomer. It’s Ivor, grinning, kicking his feet like an excited child.
“Dude! What’s wrong with you?” Jesse snaps.
Ivor ignores them. “This is the greatest find of our time!” he shouts. “I can't believe you actually found it - that you're actually holding this!”
Ivor begins going on a spiel about the flint and steel, flapping his hands around as the other three stare. Lukas listens quietly, trying to make sense of what he’s saying - Old Builders, Eversource, temple - precious treasure, something along those lines. Some of it goes over his head. The rest of the time, Aiden Aiden Aiden. Somewhere out there, staying true to his word. Maybe we’ll ramp up the competition a bit. Beat them at their own game. Lukas swallows back whatever emotion it is this time. Aiden. Maya, Gill - they’re treasure-hunting. They’re competing , like this is some fucking Endercon part two, now for precious artifacts. And still after Jesse. Always after Jesse. Lukas clenches his fists. It doesn’t matter how many building competitions he wins. When will Aiden get it into his head that he’s not going to get to Jesse’s level? Not if he’s still rocking that attitude of his - arrogant, overly-confident, wanting control, even if he has to shove others to the ground to do it. And Jesse - bless them - even Jesse had looked concerned before. I dunno what’s wrong with him, but he’s freaking me out. Lukas recalls the last Endercon. The lava. The smoke. The woollen creeper burning down. Don’t go pointing any more fingers at me.
I was never in the wrong , he realizes, a slight rage rising in him. I was never. Because Jesse is nothing if not moral, holding the same principles and views as Lukas. And if Aiden is throwing his weight around like this, then - then - he’s the one in the wrong. He always has been.
Lukas does not argue when Petra asks him to tag along with her, Ivor, Jesse. He does not argue as he leaves with them, out of town and towards the jungle he’d visited only months ago. He does not argue because he refuses to be useless. He refuses let Aiden do whatever he wants. Not this time. Not again. And if stopping him means I have to confront him , Lukas vows, so be it. He refuses to stand still this time. Even if it’s going to split his world apart to see his old friend, Lukas will not stand still. He falls behind at the rear, one hand on his bow, readying to fire if he needs to. Just in case. Petra, whispering to Jesse as Ivor dances on ahead, had asked him to watch their backs. That’s exactly what he’ll do. He’ll be ready for Aiden. He’ll be ready for anything.
Even then, it’s a slap to his face when Aiden appears.
Jesse’s enchanted flint and steel lies scattered across the bricks. The portal before them quivers, whispering, but it’s all Lukas can do to stand upright. Aiden has not changed much since he last saw him. Neither have Maya and Gill. In fact, they look - healthier. More robust, boasting far more muscle than Lukas remembers. Most of all - happier . His heart squeezes. His mouth tastes foul. Had Lukas really been holding them back that much? Had his company really been so awful as to affect them physically? No. No. And then Lukas notices, with a tang of bitterness, that they are all wearing leather jackets, adorned with blaze rods crossed over each other in an X. They are armoured too, in a fashion similar to himself, and all three of them wear the same, smug smile.
Aiden bends, and picks up the flint and steel. “Ah. Thanks for bringing this back to me, Jesse.” His eyes look over Lukas for a fraction of a second, but does not acknowledge him. It’s like Lukas is invisible to him. Or dead.
“I knew you were good for something,” Aiden continues, sneering. “You’re pretty easy to follow, you know that?”
Beside Lukas, Jesse grits their teeth. “That thing is way bigger and more powerful than you could understand,” they spit. “Give it back.”
Aiden laughs. “Says the person who just got knocked trying to light it. Now, step aside, Jesse. We’re heading through that portal now.”
Lukas is trembling. I have to fix this , he thinks, then recoils, because what part of this does he have to fix? None of it - none of it - Aiden is already so long gone, that much is clear - yet - Aiden had been his friend. The Blaze Rods had started out as his team. So despite everything, Lukas steps forwards, one hand reaching for an arrow, the other for his bow.
“Get out of here, Aiden,” he orders, with as much bravado as he can muster. Even then, he can hear the words quivering in his mouth.
Aiden’s eyes finally - finally meet his. “Hello, Lukas,” he sneers. The storm in his eyes is as present as ever. He draws his sword - diamond, enchanted, when had that happened? “I see my suspicions were correct. You have been licking their boots.”
Lukas flinches. “I said,” he repeats, “get out of here, Aiden.”
Aiden tosses his head back and laughs. “No, you get out of here! You’re the one that doesn’t belong. Not with us, and certainly not with them .” He gestures at Jesse, cricking his neck.
“Shut up!” Jesse snarls, with so much ferocity that Lukas flinches again. “Don’t you dare talk about Lukas like that in front of me.”
Lukas’ skin jolts. Jesse too unsheaths their sword.
“This is where it ends,” they go on. “Get out of the way.”
Aiden rolls his eyes. “Fine. Blaze Rods? Clear me a path.”
Gill and Maya rush at the four of them. Lukas pulls out his bow, hands shaking as he notches an arrow and points it at Maya. She’s locked her sword with Petra’s, grinning. Then she turns her head slightly towards Lukas, the look in her eyes beyond any emotion he’s ever seen from her.
Lukas drops the arrow.
“Let’s go!” Aiden hoots, sliding into the portal. The other Blaze Rods follow suit, shoving the others out of the way.
Ivor clutches his knees. “We’ve got to follow them!” he urges. “If they get the Eversource, who knows what trouble they'll cause?”
Jesse wipes their mouth, their eyes fixed and stormy on the portal. “We’re going after Aiden,” they start, quietly at first, “and we’re going to take him down!” They fling themself at the portal with a mighty cry, and then Petra follows, Ivor tumbling in too.
Lukas hesitates for just one second. You’re the one that doesn’t belong. You have been licking their boots.
Endercon. Beating the Dead Enders. Aiden Maya Gill all bragging, Aiden in the lead. The hunger in their faces. The indignant, petulant looks in their eyes as Lukas shut it all down. The satisfaction at seeing him squirm, just for being a good person.
An unfamiliar rage filters through him, layering itself over the stinging in his heart. You’ve always been too soft, even to our enemies. And you know what? That’s not my flaw.
“And your flaw,” Lukas whispers, “is that you’ll never be able to accept that you’ve lost.”
He charges through the portal.
💧
Lukas has never set his face into stone as much as he does today. His jaw is set as the four of them empty their pockets and build across to the distant floating city. It’s beautiful, Lukas thinks. But not for long , he thinks furthermore. Not if Aiden’s latching his claws into it.
Aiden. Had all the wins at Endercon really gotten that deep into his head? To the point where he’d never consider the possibility of losing? Of course not. He had bragged every free second after. He had taken Maya and Gill’s growing greed and added fuel to the flame. Maybe that’s why he’d called their new team the Blaze Rods: people powered by an inner fire that never dies. A fire that only burns hotter, the more obstacles there are to consume.
By the time the four of them get to the city, Aiden’s already convinced its leader - the Founder - that Jesse and their group are the ones wrecking all the havoc today. Lukas stares at the three Blaze Rods standing beside the robed Founder as she calls out for Jesse. They look so proud of themselves. So smug. The same way they did each time they won the building contest. You and your shit-talk. Of course they would have snapped back at Lukas, made it out to be his fault for dampening their spirits. His heart squeezes as the guards drag him, Ivor and Jesse past his old team. He barely notices Petra backing away with that innkeeper, Milo. How could I have been so blind? After all those years, he’d still been making excuses for them. He’d still been unable to admit that they were rotting fruit, from the inside to the out.
The Founder talks to Jesse, back straight as an arrow against her throne. Both of their faces are hard, lined with anger, the way Lukas is sure his own face is, too. Aiden, Gill and Maya lurk around the minecart system to the left. Lukas glares at them, searching their expressions for any sign of remorse, any sign of guilt or discomfort. He finds none. Maya and Gill both frown at him, eyebrows cocked up high, and as the three of them stalk past Jesse and then Lukas, Aiden whispers to him, “See what happens when you let yourself get too soft?” It takes everything in Lukas not to sock the bastard right then and there.
The three of them are led down into a cell, inventories stripped clean. Lukas flattens himself against the back wall, Ivor standing not far from him. “So much for getting that Eversource,” he mutters.
Irritation flares through Lukas. That’s still the thing you’re worried about? But he doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t have it in himself to tell Ivor to shut up again.
Jesse is conversing with the captain of the Sky City guard. Reginald, his name is - Lukas is pretty sure on that part. He stares up at the ceiling, shivering from the chill. A familiar hopelessness crashes over him - the same one he had felt in the End - that nothing would change, no matter what they do. Last time had been the Witherstorm. At least that had been in their own damn world - wherever they are this time, chasing Lukas’ old friends, it definitely is nowhere close to home. Yet home slips through the cracks too. Aiden’s smug smile. After everything. And Jesse is the one leading at the front again, cleaning up this whole mess. A mess that Lukas could have - might have - been able to prevent. A mess that stems from their bitter Endercon rivalry. From Aiden’s hubris. From Lukas, for not cutting ties sooner. He should’ve cut ties years ago. Maybe then it would have lessed how much Aiden detests Jesse. Maybe then it would have lessened the pain.
At what point had Aiden and Maya and Gill strayed? At what point had their motivations only composed of vicious competition and hunger for the number one title? Lukas thinks about all the words they’ve shared, about all the moments that scar him still. He can never put his finger on one moment. There are always a hundred leering back at him. A hundred more yet to be uncovered from his mind. And all because I became friends with Jesse , Lukas thinks, with a scoff or a sigh. All because I saw past our rivalry with them.
Jesse. What are they talking about with the captain? Lukas is barely listening, drumming his fingers against his arm guards, a heavy feeling in his gut. They shouldn’t be the one having to deal with all this. It’s not fair to put all the responsibility on Jesse. Not when they’ve already been through so much. Why doesn’t Jesse hate him?
Lukas’ stomach drops.
Why doesn’t Jesse hate Lukas for anything? If I had just tried to shut it down earlier , Lukas thinks in frustration, if I had just tried to do something about it earlier - maybe none of this would have happened. If he had cut the string back in their fourth win. If he had stopped lying to himself about how he feels. So what if the Blaze Rods were his friends? Lukas shouldn’t have had to feel scared - of his own friends . He should not have to feel scared for voicing his opinion. For standing up for what’s right, even against his friends. Especially against his friends. If they were really friends they would have at least heard him out. Of course we weren’t friends. Of course they weren’t. Why doesn’t Jesse hate me? At least some of this has to be Lukas’ fault, right? His inaction, his denial - why - you’re just as accountable. You’re as much to blame for this as I am, ‘cause you didn’t stop me. The same way you don’t stop me from putting those idiots in their place, even though they deserve it. Lukas bites back the apologies. It’s not his place to apologize for this but he is compelled to all the same. The peat feeling in his gut turns to guilt all the same.
Lukas looks back towards Jesse. He looks at the way their face crinkles as they speak to Reginald. How do they do it? How do they keep on hoping through the roughest of storms? Maybe Lukas isn’t suited to lead after all. Jesse does a far better job. Jesse takes the time to care about all their teammates. Even Lukas - though he sure as hell does not deserve their mercy. And Jesse looks at Lukas with such fondness in their eyes. It’s almost as if they value him as much more than friend. Lukas knows he definitely does. Jesse has been so kind to him this whole time. The cookie. The treehouse. The world made of wool. Letting him leave, even though he really, really should have stayed.
Lukas realizes his lips have parted into a smile. At the same time, the prison door opens. Reginald is nowhere to be seen.
Lukas blanks. Had Jesse convinced the captain to let them out?
“Come on, guys,” Jesse hisses. “We’re getting out of here.”
Ivor leaps to his feet. “Excellent work, Jesse! Now, onto the Eversource!” He scurries past them, out of the cell, and begins to rummage through the chests up ahead.
Jesse turns their eyes to Lukas. “You coming?”
Lukas shakes himself. “Sorry. Yeah.” He hurries too, blinking. Noticing how bleak his eyes are. He rubs at them, sighing. Everything’s so awful. For a split second, Lukas genuinely thinks he’d prefer having another Witherstorm to deal with. At least that had just been some mindless monster. At least that hadn’t been someone he’s been acquainted with for years.
Lukas shakes the thought away. Neither the Witherstorm nor the Aiden situations are ideal. He opens the chests in front of him, and searches for his things.
“I’m actually starting to have my doubts on taking the Eversource,” Jesse admits. “I mean, before this prison cell, when I was alone with the Founder - the way she was talking, it’s like these people really depend on it.”
Had they talked to her? Maybe back in the throne room - Lukas hadn’t been paying attention.
Ivor whips around. “ What? So you’d rather just hand it over to the Blaze Rods?”
Lukas glances at him. “Did I miss something?”
Ivor glares at him. “Maybe the fact that Aiden and his little band of misfits is also after the Eversource?” He gives a massive roll of the eyes. “Weren’t you listening, Louie?”
Not really. Not that he needed to. Lukas can infer from context.
Ivor turns back to Jesse. “We can’t let them get their dirty paws on it,” he hisses. “It’s not theirs to take.”
“Neither is it ours,” Jesse retorts. “No one should have the Eversource besides Sky City. It’s not right to take it from them. Ugh.” They shake their head. “Let’s deal with the Eversource later, okay? Right now, we’ve got bigger problems.” They stand, patting down their pockets. “Right. If I remember correctly, the throne room should be this way.”
Jesse heads down the left corridor, gesturing for Ivor and Lukas to follow. The three of them walk quickly and quietly out of the prison block, and up the stairs to the throne room. It is already dark outside, Lukas can tell even from the stairwell. He dreads to think about how many homesick days it would be, spent in this unfamiliar world.
There are voices near the top of the stairs. “..should be here somewhere, right?” Lukas hears. Jesse perks up from beside him.
“Petra?” they call, as the three of them emerge.
Petra’s eyebrows skyrocket. She’s with the innkeeper from before, Milo, both lingering near the entrance to the throne room. “Jesse! Guys! You’re all - free..?”
Jesse nods quickly. “I talked the captain into letting us out,” they explain. “Anyway - what in the world are you doing here?” They narrow their eyes at Milo. “And what are you doing with him?”
Petra ducks her head. “We were actually planning to break you out of jail,” she says. “But I guess you guys have that covered.” She gestures at her companion, a faint smile on her lips. “Milo here has been helping me. He’s the leader of a rebellion here in Sky City.”
Milo nods along to her words, wringing his hands. “I’ll give you the short version,” he says. “My people want to free the Eversource from the Founder’s clutches so that everyone may use it. But..” Milo’s expression grows dark. “If Aiden and his Blaze Rods steal the Eversource, we’ll just be trading one tyrant for another. I won’t allow that.” He shoulders past Petra, bringing one hand to his chin. “The Founder’s secret entrance is supposed to be somewhere in this throne room,” he muses. “If we work together, we can find the Eversource first.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Ivor throws up his arms. “Let’s get to work this instant!”
Lukas steps out of the way as the others fan out across the room. Jesse makes towards the minecart system on the left, or rather, where it had been before - the door that had opened is now firmly shut closed. Lukas tucks himself into the corner, holding his arms loosely.
Jesse looks up at the same moment he sighs. “Hey, Lukas?” Their brows furrow, and - after a slight hesitation - they walk closer to him. “You okay, man?”
Lukas fidgets. He glances away. “Why d’you ask?”
Jesse folds their arms with their own sigh. “I’m just worried,” they admit. “You’ve been real out of it ever since we got here.” They turn their eyes to the floor, lips twitching. “It’s because of the Blaze Rods, isn’t it? After all they’ve done..”
Lukas squeezes his eyes shut. “I just want to be rid of them already,” he confesses. The way they were rid of me , he almost says, catching himself at the last moment. He opens his eyes, still bleak, and shakes his head. “I took some time away from home to think. Maybe it wasn’t a permanent solution, but still..” Lukas’ shoulders sag. His legs are growing weak. “I just want to be rid of them already,” he repeats himself, clutching his forearms. Over where Aiden had scarred him, all those months ago.
Jesse sighs. “I’m sorry about all this,” they murmur. “I can’t imagine how it must be for you, I mean - they just up and left you after all that time.”
This is what you’re worth at all. Lukas’ grip grows iron-tight. “I’m sorry too,” he whispers. “I’m sorry that they’re being like this - acting like this is just another competition. Trying to hold onto what glory they have left.” If you can even call it glory. Lukas scowls.
“No, no, no.” Jesse shakes their head. “Lukas, come on. Don’t apologize for them, okay? They did this. None of this is your fault.”
Lukas finally looks to them. He stares them dead in the eyes, trembling.
“Isn’t it?” he says. He regrets it the moment the words leave his mouth.
Jesse answers at once. “No. No, it’s not.”
Lukas tears his gaze away.
Jesse places a hand on his shoulder. “You did your best,” they continue. “I know you did, Lukas. You were kind when you were their leader. You still are.” They squeeze his shoulder, slowly, and shuffles closer. “Just - just because you used to be their leader doesn’t make you one of them. Far from it. Please don’t blame yourself.” They sigh again, far heavier this time. “Maybe it wasn’t a good idea, getting you to come with..”
Maybe. Maybe not. “I appreciate it, though,” Lukas mumbles, smiling weakly. “I missed going on adventures with you guys. It’s a lot more fun, seeing as you guys actually care about me.” He stops, realization dawning, and he turns the words over in his head.
Jesse takes their hand back. Something about their face has turned stony, wintry, cold. “I promise you,” they whisper, “I promise you that we aren’t leaving until we put them Blaze Rods in their rightful place.” Their expression hardens even further as they shake their head. “They didn’t deserve you. They never deserved you. And you - you deserve better, Lukas.”
Lukas swallows. “Yeah, well? At least I’ve got you guys now.” And even then, he’s not quite sure if Jesse is someone he deserves.
Jesse closes their fists. “We’ll win,” they insist. “We will.”
Lukas nods wearily, clinging onto their words. You have been licking their boots. “Whatever you’re doing,” he vows, teeth clenched, “I’ll be right beside you.” He cracks his knuckles, picturing Aiden’s sneering face in his mind. “I won’t hesitate in doing what I need to. They’re not the only ones with unfinished business.”
Jesse’s eyes soften. They unfurl their fingers, and clasp one hand in the other. “And if you need me,” they go on, “I’m here for you. Okay, Lukas? I’m here. Whatever you need.”
Those are the same or similar words from the day they’d stood by Reuben’s memorial, repeated back at him. But Lukas knows Jesse means it, means it with all their heart. So he nods, shifting his goggles higher on his head, and replies, “Thank you, Jesse.”
The smile Jesse gives him back is worth almost every inch of hurt he’s suffered. “I’ll figure this out,” they promise. “I’ll figure it out, and then we’ll take those Blaze Rods down.”
Lukas doesn’t doubt them for a second.
💧
In the end, all it had taken was a lever. The door to the minecart system unlocks, and the group of them ride down to whatever’s awaiting them next.
There are chests lined up one after the other. A storage room, or a basement, it looks like, open-mouthed to reveal the view of the white void below. Above each set of chests are signs. SHEEP, some say. ZOMBIE, say others. All animals. All mobs.
Jesse reaches into one of the SHEEP chests and frowns. “Huh.” In their hand is a white egg splotched with pink. “That’s weird..”
“Eggs?” Ivor exclaims. “What are eggs doing in a chest labeled ‘sheep’?”
“Might as well throw it and give it a shot?” Petra suggests.
Jesse catapults the egg at the wall. The moment it collides with the stone, a sheep spawns and rolls off, shaking its fluffy head.
Lukas pulls a face at it. “A sheep? Did I just see that right?”
Milo creeps tentatively forward. “Is.. is that a monster?” He reaches out a hand, then snaps it back. “That’s not so bad. It is fluffy.”
“The eggs all have creatures inside them,” Petra observes.
“They’re different colours, too!” Ivor holds up another egg, green with black dots. “So they must be sorted based on what’s inside them..”
Jesse turns back to them in disbelief. “This must be where the resources come from,” they realize. “Different mobs, different loot drops-”
“Argh!” Ivor jogs on the spot. “We’re close! I can’t wait!”
Jesse shakes themself. “Come on. Let’s look around.”
“Wait.” Petra points at something in the distance. “What’s that?”
A small figure hovers behind a mound of dirt. Jesse glances at Petra and Lukas in turn, and inch closer. The figure moves too, and appears from where it hides.
Lukas pinches himself. His skin stings from where he’s squeezed his fingers.
“The Eversource is a chicken?” Jesse splutters.
A chicken wearing a crown, apparently. “What,” Petra deadpans.
“Yes.. the spawn eggs.. it’s so simple!” Ivor gestures wildly at the air. “The chicken lays the eggs, the eggs spawn mobs, the mobs produce loot - yes! It all makes sense!”
Milo shakes his head. “Incredible!”
“Jesse, throw it in the minecart and let’s get out of here.” Ivor urges. Then he pauses, narrowing his eyes. “We’re still taking it, right?”
Lukas folds his arms and scoffs. “The chicken that this entire city depends on? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
Milo rounds on Ivor. “We need to bring it to the people,” he exclaims. “With it, we’ll finally be free of the Founder!”
“But that clucking thing is what we came for!” Ivor argues.
Jesse shakes their head. “No,” they say, stepping back. “Ivor, Lukas is right. We have to leave it here. It doesn’t belong to us.”
Lukas nods, pleased. But Ivor’s eyes bulge out of their sockets. “ What? I thought that was the whole point of this adventure!”
Then Jesse’s eyes widen. “Guys, look out-”
In a split second Ivor and Milo and Petra are on the ground, groaning. Lukas jumps back.
“I knew it,” the Founder whispers, drawing back her fist. “I knew you were here to steal from me.”
Swords in hand, Aiden, Gill and Maya follow behind her. Aiden’s smirk is the widest of the three, but it fades when he spots Lukas, replaced by an ugly sneer.
Lukas balls up his fists. “Aiden,” he growls. I won’t hesitate in doing what I need to. He stares after his old friend, his face setting back into stone.
Aiden ignores him. He puts the smirk back on. “It’s just like I told you, Founder,” he croons. “They’re here to steal the Eversource. Classic Order of the Stone.” He shakes his head with a click of his tongue.
“You don't say,” the Founder snarls. “Step aside, criminals.”
“Now, hang on a second!” Jesse holds up their hands. “It’s not what it looks like. Let’s just talk about this, okay?”
“I’m not sure there's anything to talk about,” the Founder snaps. She lifts her chin up high, continuing, “Aiden warned me that you were a pack of thieves. A group of lowlives, pretending that you’re destined for greatness.” She gestures at the chicken, the Eversource. “And here you are - outsiders, barging into my city, prepared to make off with the one thing our people depend on to survive! Have you no shame?”
Jesse shares a look with Lukas. Both of them stare after the Founder, wordless.
Behind the Founder, Aiden’s smile spreads.
“Boy,” he drawls, scooting around her, “when you put it like that, I almost feel bad.”
He slips his hand into a chest and pulls out an egg. The same as what Ivor had been holding before: green with black splotches.
“What?” The Founder gasps, snapping herself back. “No. No, no, but you said-”
“And you believed me,” Aiden laughs, sliding his sword into its sheath. “Oh, all of you are just as stupid as each other. Now move aside. I’ll be taking the chicken, now.”
The Founder straightens. “This is outrageous! Aiden, don’t you dare take one more step this way-”
Aiden pitches the egg at the floor. “Somebody order eggs?” he hoots, laughing and laughing and laughing.
A creeper bursts out of the broken shells.
“Duck!” Jesse shouts.
Both Lukas and Jesse careen to the side as the creeper begins to glow. The Founder unsheaths her swords.
It explodes, the impact flinging Lukas against the wall even though he’s well away from it. The Founder flies with a scream, over the basement edge. She’s gonna fall , Lukas panics, but then she catches herself, just about holding on, fingernails digging deep into the soft grass floor.
Lukas’ breath catches.
Petra, suspended in the beam. Jesse, suspended in the beam.
Aiden lurches forwards towards the Eversource.
But Lukas is past bystanding.
“Oh no, you don’t,” he spits, diving in front of Aiden. He raises his gauntlets just in time, as Aiden slams his fists into Lukas’, sending quakes throughout his entire body.
Lukas whips over to Jesse. They’re struggling to their feet, wheezing and coughing from the smoke. “I've got Aiden!” he shouts to them. “Save the Founder!”
Aiden lets out a mighty scoff. “Oh, do you ‘got’ me, Lukas?” he sneers, shoving Lukas hard.
Lukas bends his knees, setting his feet firm against the grass below. He pushes back against Aiden, the way he used to push back in cheerier times, in cheery times turned sour. “Give up, Aiden,” he snarls. “Your jealousy isn’t getting you anywhere.”
At those words, something in Aiden’s expression changes. He is looking at Lukas now - properly seeing him - properly acknowledging him one-on-one ever since the temple. The storm returns. The storm lingers on.
Aiden throws a fist towards his face. Lukas dodges, hitting back against his hand. “Just shut your mouth!” Aiden screams. “After everything I did for you, after everything we had - this is how you repay me? By crawling back to the likes of them?”
He spares a moment to point at Jesse, now hunched over the Founder struggling to drag her up. Another scream of frustration explodes from Aiden’s lips and he slams his palms into Lukas’ ribs.
He can already feel them bruising. Lukas wheezes, desperately knocking aside more of Aiden’s punches. Defending. Always defending. “I was never out to hurt them, Aiden,” Lukas shouts back. “That was all you- ”
“Oh, shut up!” Aiden grabs onto Lukas’ right arm and twists it with so much force that Lukas nearly cries out. He stares into Aiden’s face, searching for any apprehension, any at all. The anger is clear in his eyes - fierce, brutal, unrelenting. But Lukas has known Aiden well enough that for a moment - just a moment - he recognizes pain flashing across his old friend’s eyes.
“ Years , Lukas!” Aiden screams, his voice going raw. “We had years together, and you throw it all away to trot after Jesse -”
Lukas tugs his arm away. Tries to, at least. But Aiden’s got an iron grip on it, fingertips digging into his skin. He’s gotten stronger , Lukas thinks meekly. So much stronger. No wonder Aiden had wanted to train in combat so much. So he could fend for himself when it came to something like - like this.
Lukas wrenches away again, throwing his free hand on Aiden’s arm. His arm could very well break at this rate. “Stop it, Aiden!” he snaps. “Just stop it-”
“No, you stop, Lukas!” Aiden shoves him in the chest again, so hard that he almost collapses. His lips curl into a mocking, almost-pitying sneer. “You’ve never been able to beat me in a fight. Not then, not now. You weakling .”
Rage tears through Lukas. The way Aiden’s stone sword had torn through his right arm. The way Aiden’s words had sliced through him without either even realizing. Just for standing by what’s right.
“I,” Lukas seethes, “am a thousand times stronger than you’ll ever be.”
Aiden shakes his head so viciously he might break his neck. “No. No!” He shoves Lukas again, yanking him closer by the arm. “You’re nothing,” Aiden spits. “You hear me? Nothing!”
He twists Lukas’ left arm now, eyes hard and bulging and cold. “I’mma put you in your place, Lukas,” Aiden pants. “I’mma put you right where you belong. So stay down, or I’ll make you!”
Lukas laughs despite it all. Fifteen years, reduced to this soft sound on his lips. Fifteen fucking years. “Do you even hear yourself?” he snipes. “You’re crazy, Aiden. You’re never going to win. Not like this-”
Pain spikes through Lukas’ cheek.
Then the ground below him disappears. The floating storage room grows further and further away.
💧
Lukas falls.
You have been licking their boots.
He can’t breathe.
This is what you’re worth to us. This is what you’re worth at all.
He can’t feel.
We needed you. We needed you, and what do you do? You abandoned us.
Not the wind on his face.
If you weren’t so damn good at building, at having your little friend get you all that rare stuff - maybe..
Not the screaming of his lungs.
Would be helpful if you were stronger, ‘cause I won’t be there all the time to protect your pathetic ass.
Not even the pain he knows is flickering to every corner of his body.
I want you to be able to do what you need to do, in the face of people or things that mean us harm.
Pain. A torturous cycle of torment and grief, dumbed down to that small, simple word.
You had to ruin it with your shit-talk, didn’t you?
Some sliver of the past comes back to him.
I knew it! I knew a rainbow beacon was the way to go this year.
Something more.
Want me to help patch up that sleeve?
Something more.
It’s been quite a few years now, and we’re good friends, aren’t we? Thought it’d be appropriate, to start calling you by a nickname.
Something more.
Nice work today, huh? Great job, Lukas. We couldn’t have done it without you.
Something more.
Don’t be stupid! Of course that’s cool with us. Why wouldn’t it be?
Something more.
What are we gonna call ourselves, by the way? Our team name?
Something more.
If you’re looking for a teammate, I’d be happy to tag along.
Lukas submerges into water.
💧
He breaks the surface with a gasp, then a cough, kicking his legs to keep himself afloat. Am I dead? There’s land all around him - land, trees, rivers and mountains - as far as the eye can see. I’m dead. I’ve got to be. But he’s soaked to the bone, freezing all over, and there’s still pain in his arms and his ribs and his face. If he’s not dead, then - all of this is real. There’s land beneath Sky City. Land.
Lukas gets a grip on himself and paddles over to the edge of the - ah, the edge of the lake he’s landed in. He heaves himself towards an oak tree nearby, staring back. The lake’s a decent size, but there’s still far more land surrounding the area than water. Lukas could have easily hit the ground instead. He shudders, and slumps against the tree.
Lukas winces, clutching his arms. They’re sprained and bruising - that much he knows for sure - but the bones don’t feel broken, at least. His ribs might be cracked. It hurts just to stand, but he does anyway, grimacing.
Something warm rolls down his right cheek. Lukas frowns, and carefully lifts an arm to wipe it away. His hand comes away smeared. Smeared with red.
He stares. Oh.
Aiden had hit him in the face before he fell. A sharp bit of his gauntlet had torn right through his cheek. Lukas drops his hand, wiping the blood onto his trousers.
After everything I did for you, after everything we had - this is how you repay me? By crawling back to the likes of them?
Does it really matter that much to Aiden? That Lukas and Jesse are friends? Is that what all this has been about? Lukas clenches his teeth, still chattering from the shock-cold of the water. Years, Lukas! We had years together, and you throw it all away to trot after Jesse!
Jesse. Lukas looks sharply up, wincing again. Jesse’s still up there - stuck with Aiden. Had they managed to save the Founder at least? Lukas hadn’t the time to turn around and check. Oh, Jesse. Had they been staring down at him as he fell? Had they noticed at all? No, shut up - of course they’d have noticed. Lukas doesn’t remember seeing their face, though. He doesn’t remember seeing anyone’s faces. He only remembers the snarl in Aiden’s as he beat Lukas around like he was nothing. He only remembers the howl in his voice as he spat those words at Lukas: you’re nothing you hear me nothing.
Aiden’s the whole reason they’re all here. Lukas had only fuelled his hunger, had fed him even unknowingly. And Lukas had failed to beat him. Defending. Always defending. And Jesse-
Lukas sags against the tree. We’re doomed , he thinks, with a bitter laugh to pair.
Two splashes come from up ahead and Lukas jolts. What the-? He looks up, doing a double take when two heads break the surface of the lake.
“Ha!” Jesse whoops to the Founder. “We made it!”
Lukas’ mouth falls open. “Holy crap, Jesse!” he blurts. “You're down here too?”
Aiden. Had Aiden kicked them both down here? Lukas runs his tongue over his teeth, a sour taste in his mouth.
Jesse hauls themself out of the lake and scampers over. “Lukas! You made it!” They slow to a stop, a few steps from his face, running one of their hands over the other.
Lukas can’t quite curb his smile. “Yep!” He nods, and grimaces. “Only slightly worse for wear. Gotta say, Aiden's tougher than I remember.” He’d been tough to begin with.
A laugh bubbles out of Jesse. They shake their head, flinging droplets of water off their hair. “I’m just so glad you’re alive!” they exclaim. “When Aiden pitched you over the side-” They stop abruptly, eyes growing wide. Their fists have closed over their thighs. For a moment it’s like they’re unsure of what to say, but then they finish, “That was awful.”
Was it? No, of course it would have been. If Jesse had been the one falling, Lukas would have felt awful too. He tries to shrug it off, heat creeping into his cheeks. “Yeah, I wasn’t a huge fan either.”
Pain snakes through his left arm. Lukas grimaces again, fingers closing over it. “Goddamn it,” he mouths, angrily. He had barely scraped Aiden. Aiden had been the one doing all the injuring.
Jesse sucks in a breath. “Are you okay?” they rasp. “Your arm, is it-”
“It’s fine,” Lukas cuts in, smiling again. The last thing he wants right now is to worry Jesse. Damn it, they’re the one doing most of the work. “It’s not broken, just - a little bruised. But I’ve handled worse. Don’t worry, Jesse.”
The look in their eyes does not ease. “What about your face?” Jesse reaches out a hand, tentative, and then draws it back, “You’re bleeding, Lukas. Did Aiden-”
The cut. “Ah, that?” Lukas puts on a brave face. “Yeah, he got a bit too close to me, right before he pushed me over.” His face is warm again; warm from his own blood. Lukas brings a hand to his cheek again, teeth clenched as he gives it a proper wipe this time. “It’ll scar,” he muses, thinking of the other one Aiden had given him, “but it’s alright. I’m glad this is the worst it has to get.”
Jesse’s expression tightens. It’s the same expression they wore when they’d talked to him earlier, back in the throne room. The same expression they wore when they talked to him in Soren’s wool world. The same expression they wore when Lukas left the cave to find the Ocelots, the now-Blaze Rods. When Lukas was on the fence about leaving the treehouse that night. Only now, Lukas allows himself to take in just how much anxiety is sketched out in their face. Just how much fear they carry in their features. Fear for others. Fear for him .
Something about it makes him light and dizzy.
“Jesse?” Lukas tries. “Hey, you’re making that face again.”
Jesse shakes themself, the worried-puppy look gone in a matter of seconds. “What face?” they exclaim, coy.
Lukas rolls his eyes. “Y’know the one,” he says. “When you’re pretending that you’re not worried about something, or someone, but..” He trails off, remembering the blood on his hand. He wipes it on his trousers again, and sighs deeply. “I’m fine, Jesse,” he assures them. “Really. You don’t need to worry.”
Still. He appreciates them worrying at all. He almost tells them as much. But the fury is gaining on Jesse’s face, fury so foreign, so out of place upon the plains of their features. Lukas bites his tongue.
“I should’ve backed you up back there,” Jesse states, the bitterness in their tone unmistakable.
Lukas shakes his head. No, no. “Like I said, Jesse,” he tells them, “don’t worry about me. I thought I could take him on myself.” He spots the Founder gaping up at a tree not far from him. She looks frazzled, yes, but otherwise unharmed. “Besides,” Lukas continues, staring at her, “it was good of you to try and save the Founder.” His eyebrows furrow. “Speaking of whom. Is she doing okay?”
Jesse’s gaze trails off after her. They don’t say anything, but Lukas sees their eyes growing wild, sees their fists clenched so tight that their knuckles are paling. He sees the way their jaw is set. And it occurs to him, after quite some time, that he has never seen Jesse so angry in his life.
“Aiden’s still up there,” they tell him, after some quiet staring. “Aiden’s - I’m going to pillar up.” They turn back to Lukas, fully facing him once more. “I’m going to end it,” they snarl, words laced with venom.
They march over to the Founder and begin talking to her. Lukas leans their way, trying to make out the words, but just as he’s starting to catch onto their conversation a zombie falls out of the sky.
“What the..” Lukas stares upwards, mouth agape. More mobs are tumbling down. Spiders. Skeletons. Even a sheep or two. Lukas watches them reach the surface and die from the impact, leaving nothing behind but their loot. That could’ve been me , he thinks again. That could’ve been Jesse.
“Aiden,” the Founder growls, skirting over to where Lukas is. “This is his doing, I just know it.”
If the Founder’s down here, then Aiden must have control of the spawn eggs. Of the Eversource. “Oh, that’s not good,” he mutters, mouth dry.
“He must be going crazy with those spawn eggs,” Jesse says. “All those monsters everywhere.” They look towards the Founder. “Here’s the plan - we’re going to collect some dirt. Then we’re going to build a tower all the way back up there, and we are going to stop Aiden for good.”
The Founder nods, dazedly. “Thank you, Jesse,” she says. “And, please - call me Isa.”
Jesse nods back. They glance at Lukas, eyebrows raised. “Are you coming, Lukas?” they ask.
Lukas tests his arms, and winces. “No,” he decides. “I think I should sit this one out, Jesse. I’m not feeling the best - I’ll probably just hold you guys back.” He gulps, and looks away. “I’m really sorry,” he whispers. Because he is. Because he can’t get up there and sort it out himself. Aiden had been his friend. His responsibility. Not Jesse’s. Not anyone else’s.
Jesse turns. “Don’t be sorry,” they reply, not looking at him. “Just - rest up, okay, Lukas? I’ll see you again soon.”
“Yes,” the Founder agrees. “Thank you for trying to help. It was very noble.”
Lukas nods, and gives them both a weak smile. “Stay safe up there, alright?” he croaks. I can’t afford to lose you, too. He thinks about saying as much to Jesse, but by the time he’s decided to, both they and the Founder have already turned their backs on him, gathering dirt. Lukas watches, and shakes his head as the pair of them begin towering back up. I’ll tell them once they get back , he decides.
He leans against the tree, nursing his arms. At some point he feels confident enough to take out his bow, in case Jesse takes longer than he expects and it gets dark before they return. The sky above is light in colour, a wispy yellowed blue. It’s beautiful. And Lukas wishes, quite suddenly, that he had a book on him, a book and quill, to make drawings of this, to make notes - just to give his sore hands something to do. And then he looks at his arms. At the dried blood on the back of his right hand. The blood from his face. The blood Aiden had shed yet again, like the scar on his right arm. He had never been gentle, had he? Not in competition, not in training, not even with his friends. Roiling. Always the storm cloud in a sky full of sun.
Aiden had tried to kill him.
The realization finally sets in. Aiden, believing there was nothing below Sky City, had pushed him off. On purpose. After everything I did for you, after everything we had - this is how you repay me? And this is how he repays Lukas? He’s not the only one who spent all those years for nothing. Maya and Gill too - they had just followed him, blindly, into something as drastic as this. Even though they had clearly been reluctant. Clearly glum. And now, because of Aiden - Jesse and the Founder had fallen too, and who knows what’s left of Sky City..
Lukas winds his arms tight around himself. Yet.. He thinks back to the storage room, to that brief moment where there had been pain in Aiden’s eyes where there should have been nothing. Where there should have only been hunger. Had the storminess in his eyes ever been storminess at all? Had it only been genuine hurt instead?
Lukas’ insides curdle. The pain registers again - his aching arms, his bruised chest. The cut on his face. He scowls at himself. Aiden had tried to kill him. Yet , Lukas thinks, shaking the tears from his eyes, I still make excuses for you.
He sighs, and slips his bloodied hand into his trouser pocket. His fingers brush against paper. Huh? Lukas grips the page, frowning, and pulls it out. He half-expects it to be a note from Jesse or something, seeing as they had been the one to bring him back this armour, but it’s not.
It’s the fountain sketch.
Lukas stares at it.
Had it been hiding within his armour this whole time? He’d put the note into the same chest the armour was kept, and hadn’t found it since, so he’d stopped thinking about it entirely. Holding it now, Lukas notices just how badly his hands are shaking.
He turns the page over. The ink of Aiden’s message is smudged, fading, but he still catches the words against his better judgement. You’re a great friend. So here’s to more years of our friendship to come.
Lukas rips the page in half.
Then he rips the halves of the pages in half. Then the quarters. Again. And again. And again, until all that’s left are small scraps of paper that the wind blows out of his palms before he can even consider holding onto them for long. He lets them go, watching as they trail off into the distance in a practiced swirl, and something akin to satisfaction, to closure - finally, finally closes in on him, wrapping its arms around his shoulders.
💧
A few hours later, a cracking splash comes from the lake up ahead. For a moment, Lukas fears that it might be Jesse, knocked back down again. For a moment, he fears it could be any of the others - any at all. But all that fear is replaced quickly by relief and then realization and then coldness, as he watches Aiden break the surface of the water, spluttering for the life of him.
If Aiden’s down here, that can only mean one thing. Jesse won. The Blaze Rods lost.
Lukas closes his eyes for just a moment. Thank you. Thank you. He opens them again, just as Aiden crawls out from the edge of the lake, coughing. His face is whiter than quartz, his breaths frenzied and heavy. He slaps a hand to his nose, and Lukas realizes with a pang of triumph that it’s bleeding . Aiden struggles to his feet, wiping his face, and stops the moment his eyes meet Lukas’.
They no longer hold anger in them. They no longer hold greed. Only panic. Only guilt. Only regret.
For a second, Lukas almost feels sympathetic.
Aiden collapses back on his knees.
“Lou,” he breathes, his breaths still hard.
The sympathy vanishes as fast as it comes. Rage returns in its place. Despite his aching arms, Lukas draws his bow, notches an arrow, and points it at his old friend.
“Don’t,” Lukas whispers. “Don’t you dare call me Lou ever again.”
Aiden hangs his head. He looks pathetic like that. But at least he stays still, save for raising his arms high, high above his head.
Two more splashes come from the lake. Lukas sees a waterfall crashing down from the sky - they must’ve broken a stream of water up there - and then the splashes multiply in number. Two splashes, then four, then eight then there’s too many for him to count - but there’s no doubt about who it is. The citizens of Sky City. And the other Blaze Rods.
Maya and Gill scrabble out of the lake.
“Aiden! Aiden, we have to get outta here!” Maya cries, heading towards him but she skids to a stop, sliding on her knees. “Oh, no.” She bites down on her lip when she sees Lukas, her eyes pleading, but not pleading enough. She raises her hands high too. Gill sinks down beside her, panting for breath.
“Lukas!” Lukas looks over at the sound of his name. Jesse has just landed again, grinning from ear to ear, Petra and Ivor standing not far from them. Jesse waves at him. Lukas feels a grin spreading across his own face.
“Hey guys!” he calls over. “Guards! Check out what washed up right next to me,” he says, cocking his head at the three Blaze Rods.
A dark-haired guard strides up to them. “Freeze, criminals! You’re not going anywhere.”
Reginald marches up to them too, nodding stiffly at Lukas. “Thanks for keeping watch,” he says, with a slight salute. Lukas lowers his bow, confused at the gesture, but salutes back anyway.
The Sky City guards lead the Blaze Rods away. Lukas settles back against his tree, watching them leave. Maya and Gill turn their heads back to stare at him, pleading, or at least apologetic. Aiden does not turn at all. Aiden does not look at anyone.
Something, somewhere, within the depths of Lukas’ heart, eases. They’re going. They’re being dealt with. I don’t have to see them ever again. He draws in a deep breath, and lets it out just as slowly, the burden going with it. Finally.
Jesse is beside him in an instant. “Glad to see the back of them,” they say, in a volume far louder than their usual tone.
Lukas’ lips twitch. “Yeah,” he murmurs. “Definitely.”
Petra skirts over, sporting a devious grin. “Ha!” she laughs, head tilted far back. “Look at Aiden’s face!” She slips her beloved gold sword into its sheath, eyes finding Jesse’s. “That your handiwork, Jess?”
Lukas’ stomach lurches. Jesse did that to Aiden? He looks towards them, shock melting into him judging by the smirk on their face.
“You bet!” Jesse replies, almost boastfully. They wipe their mouth, and continue, “Bet he’s regretting messing with my people. Or me, for that matter.”
Jesse did that to Aiden?
Jesse has never been physically aggressive to anyone. They have never been the one to incite violence against anyone. Not even the Blaze Rods. In fact, Jesse’s usually the one fighting against it. Never the one to strike back unless they absolutely, absolutely need to, and even then it’d be with a sword.
Jesse punched Aiden? Jesse?
Petra’s next words echo Lukas’ sentiments precisely. “I’m surprised you punched him in the first place,” she comments, eyebrows quirking curiously. “Ah, but - all’s well that ends well. I knew they wouldn’t get away.”
“Yes,” Ivor snarks. Lukas jumps at his voice - the man had crept up without warning again. “I would hope not, what with all they’ve done.”
Lukas’ thoughts turn dark. All those years. “Yeah,” he blurts, catching the attention of everyone around him. “Hopefully they dig a deep hole, bury them in it, surround it with lava and-”
He stops abruptly, upon seeing the horror on everyone’s faces. Ivor is the only one smiling, nodding approvingly. Lukas ducks his head, clearing his throat.
“Sorry,” he mumbles. “Got a little carried away there.”
Jesse’s eyebrows twitch. They lean closer to him, only a little bit, but it still ignites a burning in the back of Lukas’ neck. “You’ve got every right to be angry,” they tell him in a low voice. “Even after everything you did for them, they hurt you and took advantage of you. That’s not cool.”
Living together. Building together. Searching for them while the Witherstorm was still out there. Lukas turns away so they don’t see the blush in his cheeks.
“Yeah,” he agrees, “it’s not.”
Jesse had punched Aiden. Jesse . Chronic peacemaker. Constantly being thrown the title of hero. Yet they had punched Aiden. Yet they had left him with blood pouring out of his nose.
Did they do that for my sake?
Through the brief silence that was, Lukas realizes he’s smiling. “But at least I have you guys now,” he goes on. “And - you, Jesse.” He pauses, and decides to nudge them with his elbow. “You’re a better friend than any of those three could ever be,” he tells them, quivering. “Thank you.”
Jesse beams, the rays of sun behind them catching in their hair. Lukas’ heart stops.
He barely even hears it when they answer. “Of course,” they reply. “Anything for a friend.”
I don’t want to just be your friend , Lukas thinks but does not say.
Oh.
He had thought this over before, hadn’t he? He doesn’t view Jesse as a friend. Not just a friend. After all they’ve been through together, there’s no way that Jesse could just be a friend to Lukas. To him, Jesse is hope. Jesse is a reason to push on. Jesse is a start, an end, and a new beginning. An open book, each scar a new story, another chapter to be told. How do I tell them this? How does he tell them that he wants to be more? To be so much more to them, this selfless, selfless person. Had Lukas ever once looked at Jesse in disdain? Had it ever once occurred to him that they might be someone foul? Someone who only clings to him out of necessity, or because he’s useful, or because he’s the only person who still wants them around.
They never deserved you.
No, perhaps they didn’t. Perhaps just thinking about Aiden Maya Gill will still sting. But that’s okay. Like with all wounds, it will heal in time. Like with all wounds, he needs to accept that he’s wounded in the first place.
You deserve better, Lukas.
Is Jesse the better that he deserves? Someone whose eyes are kind yet whose resolve is rock-solid? Maybe he doesn’t deserve them. Maybe he does. But Jesse’s let him stick around for so long already. And Jesse is the one whose life Lukas wants written the most into his. The one whose company he would never, ever deny.
Gratitude hits him then, flooding into his senses, his chest, his mind - overwhelming, so much so that Lukas tears up. I’m glad to have you, Jesse. He’s glad to have them. He’s so glad to have them. Even if their relationship hadn’t tethered, there’s no way in hell that Aiden would go through even a quarter of as much trouble for Lukas. Nor Maya, nor Gill.. but Lukas owes Jesse. He owes them his loyalty, his presence, his life. And he’s not sure how much he minds the fact.
Bet he’s regretting messing with my people.
Regret, indeed.
Lukas smiles, properly, and looks towards Jesse again. Their eyes are focused on the Founder ahead, giving a speech. They look so serene here, as if nothing had even happened since their arrival to this world, as if they were only watching the sun rise higher over the horizon. Something about the tranquil way they hold themself breathes a different kind of sadness into Lukas. He watches them, watching on, and does not bother to wipe his eyes.