Chapter Text
A sound stirs me awake, as I slowly open my eyes I am met with darkness surrounding me on each side, my vision is blurry, my head dizzy, and my ears won't stop ringing.
I can't think straight, yet I can't stop thinking.
My mind aches as I struggle to find my footing, pushing myself upward to see how I am laying in a void of pure black, I shiver, as memories of a similarly dark place resurface, but as I check to see if I’m still myself, I notice something. My skin is entirely white, but not in the same way Omori’s pale tone and sketched out clothes were, no, my body is entirely white, seemingly glowing as I lay in that darkness. I try to understand what is happening, feeling my breathing get rapid as I grasp at my chest, not even hearing my voice come through as the ringing gets louder, but before I can even start to panic, I notice something.
A figure, a golden figure like a man was standing in the distance away from me. He was dressed in an armor that I could barely make out through the silhouette of his golden glow, a red ponytail flowing in the nonexistent wind as he stood in silence. Normally, I would feel weirded out, even scared at the new developments, I never really liked change, but still, I find myself… curious.
I push myself upward from my spot and walk towards the golden man, standing beside him as I look to see a single cyan light in the middle of his head. An eye? A mouth? Who knows, as he doesn't turn to look at me either.
Then, he begins speaking.
“The tombs of the dragons stir. My eyes lift to see ancient dust dancing from high ledges. These grand wings… how long has it since I was a hero worthy of their name? It feels like centuries have passed, yet all I've done is blink. Look upon my works as they are… ruined. None would dare seek me out; tread my path.”
“Naught awaits them on this cruel world.”
My ears begin to ring again, as my head aches, I feel something large approaching me. I hear voices in languages I can't understand, legends in dialects unknown, and I hear the roar of something larger than I could possibly understand, seeing a vortex of black and red in the sky that grows larger and larger until a familiar eye opens in its center, making me nauseous, and by the time I manage to come to my senses…
I was falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
falling.
The sound of birds chirping is the first thing I notice, feeling an ache in my eyes, I rubbed them as I see the light of the sun filtering through my eyelids before I slowly open my eyes to see a large meadow with a forest surrounding, spanning out around me as far as one can see.
I look at my hand, it's normal, I touch my face, I can feel the scarred tissue that runs over my right eye…
So why can I see?...
I look at my clothes, it's the same I wore yesterday. I take a moment to look at the grass beneath me, I notice how it sways in the wind, I take a blade of grass and feel it beneath my fingers.
It doesn't feel different than regular grass. So why am I here? Did someone threw me out in the forest? Is there a large enough clearing anywhere near Faraway to begin with?
…Did she left me here? Had she finally had enough?
As I ponder on my situation, I stand up, only for me to almost fall as I turn and back up in a spook, having failed to notice the man fit young man standing next to me.
“Ah, you’re awake! You were out for quite some time and this isn’t exactly the safest place to be unconscious.” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath mustering all the mental strength my tired brain could give to remember what had just occurred to bring me here, but strangely enough no matter how hard I tried…. I couldn’t remember. I could remember what happened the day I was supposed to move and all of that but I had no recollection of anything past me confessing to my friends.
“You are not the only one to arrive y’know? You and a few others just fell from the sky earlier! You all just seemingly appeared out of nowhere! Certainly an… unexpected surprise, but perhaps a welcome one.” I opened my eyes and stared at him.
“And you are?” I managed, probably a little saltier than intended, as I was pretty stressed out already.
“Ah, my apologies, I am Maxwell, I bring guidance to all that who arrives in this sad, forsaken land, although I can safely say this my first time talking to someone who fell from the sky.”
“Fell from the sky? What are you-...”
My eyes widen as I recall him talking about ‘others’, with the last memory of me in the hospital room repeating in my head like a broken record.
Did they also….?
“Hey mister, do you have any idea where we are, or what’s going on exactly!?” My thoughts are interrupted as a snarky female voice pitched in, and I saw Aubrey walk up besides the man with a hand on her hip. I had to resist the urge to hug her out of relief, although I had a feeling she would punch my teeth in if I tried.
“This place goes by many names, it is merely what you wish to call it, but the name everyone knows is Terraria. It once was a beautiful land, still is in many ways, but this soil has been tainted with the scars of many tragedies that took place here. Still, one can make the most of it if they choose to see the beauty that remains.”
“Ok, sure funny man. Where’s the exit?” Aubrey demanded coldly, but fairly. Maxwell looked at us with a strange expression.
“Oh, well I was already sure you weren't quite normal after I saw you fall from the sky, but you aren't really from this place at all, are you?” He asked slowly. “First it was that monstrous deer, and now you. Perhaps there is some hope after all.”
“What’s this about hope?” Kel asked, stretching his legs. Maxwell shook his head.
“And you put that together really fast.” Aubrey pointed out, face full of distrust.
“When you’ve been here for countless hours and see as many things as I do, you learn a thing or two. And to be honest, nobody has talked about an exit before, to do so would indicate that you came from somewhere else. I do not know of any ‘exit’, but seeing as you came in, I am sure there is a way out, though I am unsure of what such a way would be.” Maxwell put a hand in his pocket, as it seemingly produced a series of bags out of thin air, and tossed one to me and the others. “These will help you with where your path leads.” I opened it and found to my surprise a sword, though a small one, an axe and a pick axe, alongside what looked like a fictional wand.
A fourth bag is tossed, as a young man catches it in the air with his hand, as a serious looking Hero arrived to the scene, making me shift uncomfortably as I see him walk past me and towards the guide.
“And how exactly do you know so much about this place? Why should we even trust what you say? You might have kidnapped us and are just spouting nonsense”
Maxwell chuckles as he looks at Hero with a sincere smile “Well, it's not entirely mine. I am merely one of many from a certain group called the Order of the Guides. It's quite a simple tradition, we collect knowledge from all parts of Terraria that we can, and we provide it for those in need of guidance. It is a thankless job, but it's better than watching hapless adventurers be eaten alive by the giant slimes or the servants of Cthulhu.”
“The what now?” Kel asks, hearing something behind him as we all turn to look, seeing a small white bunny hopping around.
Aubrey smiles and is about to say something, before a slimy blue blob appears out of nowhere and falls on top of the critter, trapping inside its slimy interior before it is quickly dissolved by the creature, only for it to be splattered in the grass by an arrow, as Maxwell quickly shoots it down.
“Damned bugger!”
All three of us turned with shocked and horrified expressions and looked at the oldest, he had already begun to step up into the older brother role. He looked around, only now spotting the flower boy, who had remained silent as he just stared at the splatter where the bunny once stood.
Hero gives a tired sigh. “Well…. I know a bit about construction work from my father, perhaps we could make a shelter for now…”
“Oh, good idea!” Said Maxwell “It should be quite the easy task for you all, Terraria’s materials are quite flexible, so it shouldn't take more than a few hours to build a decently sized shack.”
I nodded, it was the best plan we could get at the moment, although I felt a bit uneasy when Hero looked at me, even though our situation wasn't particularly normal.
It was… strange to chop down a tree, and almost disastrous when it nearly flattened me, but it wasn’t bad exactly. My muscles screamed in pain due to my stasis, I had really let go of my personal health, and every swing reminded me of it.
I had to give it to Hero, despite the randomness of the impromptu plan, he had set up a decent simple house. We all stepped inside and stared at one another in complete silence. Aubrey with her glare as she glanced between Basil and me, Kel with his hopeful, yet shaky smile, Basil with his nervous expression, Hero looking far away from us, and me, trying to remain as stoic as usual, even though my feelings and the stress within betrayed me..
“So….” Kel begun.
“What the fu-“ The pinkette began.
“Language.” Basil asked, speaking for the first time. Aubrey glared daggers at him, making him back up in response.
“What the heck happened?” She asked as we shrugged. “This makes zero sense. This makes no sense.” She repeatedly pointed at miscellaneous stuff. “This whole world makes no sense, I must be dreaming.” I hadn’t honestly given much thought to it due to the sudden shock, but this did seem like a dream, even if it felt very real…
I graced my face as I felt the scar in my face once again.
Very real…
My hand wandered to my pocket as I tried to pull out my knife to wake up, only to find nothing in its stay.
“Not a dream.” I said, almost automatically. Aubrey looked at me with a puzzled look.
“How do you even know?”
“Couldn't find the knife.” Aubrey was even more confused, and even shot me a look of concern, before she simply shook her head.
“Ugh, whatever.”
"Let's all try to remember what happened just before that." Hero suggested though I had already tried.
"I... I can't remember?" Aubrey finally admitted after a few minutes. "I remember the hospital, but not what happened after."
"I don't either." Hero added, shaking his head.
I felt like I released a sigh I didn't know I was holding.
Maybe they actually don't remember!
The calm I felt is replaced by dread and guilt, as I feel a knot in my stomach.
Did I really just felt relief about that…?
"So, what do we do?" Kel asked, smile fading. Hero shook his head.
"That Maxwell guy said there wasn't any way out, and we can't remember why or how we are here... I guess the only thing we can do is make the best of it. Things seem normal as of-" His statement was caught off guard by a noise outside, I opened the door to see several of this slimy creatures jumping around, prompting me to close the door immediately.
"You were saying?" Aubrey teased. Hero sighed.
"Do you have a better idea?" He asked, she turned her head away either in defeat or protest.
I hear a knock on the door, and I open it as Maxwell steps in, putting his bow in his back. “Ah, you’re all here, good. This is a pretty little house you’ve all built!” He walks towards our group as I close the door, with him standing near Hero and Aubrey "I'll say, if you are all staying, I would suggest finding a cave. I am guessing you are not the greatest survivalists, but I can help you make some stuff if you are able to bring me materials, or perhaps you already know. I know several people as well, if you're able to put up a few more houses, I think they'd be happy to take up residency in them, they’ll be sure to be useful assets for you in the future.”
“That is IF we stay. If we manage to find a way out, we're getting out of here for sure.”
"I think our first matter is food and water." Hero alternatively advised.
"Oh, that shouldn't be a worry! You don't technically need water or food here, but it sure does help."
"Ok, how do you know so much, really?" Aubrey accused, turning towards Maxwell. "You're far too knowledgeable and way too friendly to be trustworthy." He shrugged.
Maxwell chuckles once more "It’s like I told you missy, it’s my job to provide to those who need the help. I've been here for a long time and seen much of the world. We all have chosen an occupation, haven't we? My goal is to give anyone new here a chance at survival, or rather a way to make lives for themselves through the hardship." Aubrey maintained her acidic glare. "My brother didn't know any better when trying to make name for himself in this land, poor sap ended up eaten by a massive royal jelly.” Aubrey’s pupils shrink as her bravado falls slightly, with Basil and Kel having equally disgusted faces. “Sigh… a tragedy indeed. That's why people like me exist, to avoid adventurers making those kinds of mistakes, or at least guiding them into avoiding that kind of fate. Funny thing, I recently encountered and adventurer that had a scuffle with that same creature, her limbs seemed to have been rebuilt with a mechanical arm, both legs and wearing some sort of black neon suit. I recall hearing that she had to hide underground, but that damned thing keeps trying to catch her by monitoring the area."
"C... Can we save her? For you?" Basil asked and I couldn't help giving a small smile, he always, even now wanted to help others…
Memories of strings and bloodstains.
Even when he didn't really help at all.
Maxwell nodded. "You can certainly try, but I would recommend for you to be more prepared, the creature is massive and has a great advantage over you, but I also must warn you, if you think that is the only thing to worry bout, you are sorely mistaken. I would highly advise not going out at night if you can, lord knows if The Night Watcher noticed you he’d do whatever it could to come and end your journey ahead of time." Hero gulped.
"So... this place is just death then? Are we just doomed?" Maxwell looked tense at this.
"Not necessarily, this world is unforgiving, yes, however, there is much here that gives life and hope. At first it may seem like a prison, but I'd look at it more as getting another perspective of things."
"What does that mean?!?" Kel asked angrily. I thought about it, but I didn't find much sense to it either, seemed more like an execution, a punishment.
Something I deserve.
Maxwell shrugged. "You'll see in time. You aren't the first outsiders to arrive here, but you have been the first ones to arrive in a long time.”
“Why so?” Kel asked.
“Probably because the rest of them got eaten by a giant monster, Kel.” Aubrey replied in an annoyed tone.
“Sadly, that's sort of it. A long time ago people from all over used to come to this side of Terraria, adventurers of all kinds of lands and worlds arrived in order to seek glory and fame, but eventually they all either died off trying to accomplish their goals, or retreated after a certain encounter. Eventually this land fell into ruin, and nobody would dare to come here because-”
“Naught awaits them in this cruel world.” I spoke without thinking, when I realized, everyone was staring at me in shock, Maxwell included.
“...Yeah, something like that.”
The guide put a hand on his chin as he thought, before snapping his fingers as he realized something “Tell you what, if you mine in the cave near south and get some resources for yourselves, I will get water and food settled for you while you are out, sounds fair?" It was a plan, but we still weren't sure if we trusted Maxwell at all, so we turned to Hero looking for guidance, even though he seemingly was as lost as us.
Reluctantly Hero nodded and we made our way outside and quickly found the cave which we slowly descended into. I had always seen pickaxes around in Fix-It, but I had never even thought of using one. It was hard, but also really satisfying when the tool slammed into the earth, shattering the rock. Aubrey was great at using it, which I guess made sense, while Hero and I were struggling. Basil somehow was even outdoing Aubrey, which I guess made sense considering he spent all day lifting heavy bags of soil. That probably explained why he looked the way he did, all of his muscles were from the waist down.
Eventually, while we were mining, me and Aubrey ended up mining besides each other. I tried to fix my gaze to the stone and keep at it, but she suddenly started talking to me. “Don’t think we forgot about what you said in the hospital earlier.”
I felt a knot in my stomach, freezing in my tracks as I felt as if my sweat got stone cold.
“Even if we are stuck in this, weird fantasy land bullshit, you and Basil still lied to us for 4 years, so don't think that I’m going to be forgiving you for that any time soon.”
“I wasn't expecting forgiveness” The words came out of my mouth before I could process them.
“Good, because considering our situation, you’re lucky enough we let you stay in the cabin after what you did.” Aubrey crushes the ore beneath her pickaxe with a violent slam, collecting it before lifting her tool and walking away to the other side of the cavern, leaving me to keep mining on my own.
I wasn't sure how long we were down there, but after I managed to accidentally slay one of the slimy blobs after one spooked me while I was mining and slammed my pickaxe into it, Hero found that the gel was very flammable, and we used it along some of the wood we gathered to make some torches, allowing us to dig through the area fully. Hero kept pointing out which rocks were useful and which weren't, didn't think he was a geology kind of guy, but I was cool with it though. After some time, we decided to go back up to find that an impressive wooden cabin had been assembled, it wasn't much but when we stepped inside it would be enough for us and about one more. Aubrey studied the cabin and turned to Maxwell.
"Alright, guess you have been here some time."
"It's nothing much, but I got you some water, though it's limited as of now, and some food. Anyways, did you found anything useful there? If you let me take a look I can see what uses you can give them." I nodded and we dropped all of the rocks Hero picked out. Somehow, they didn't feel overly heavy, and we could fit a lot in our pockets. Maxwell looked at it all.
"Nice, these are all good quality ores, I'll forge that all for you." He said as he took our ore chunks from us. "But while I do so, I should explain some things if you have the patience." We all took a seat silently and waited for him to continue, after all, not like we had much else to do. He walked over to a giant furnace and began to smelt the rocks.
"When you travel the world, you will find many things and perhaps someone can even explain them to you more than I can. These items, especially those used for combat would have certainly... tendencies and affiliations that would make them stronger. To explain, I will repeat an old story about five heroes that I heard in my time in the guild…”
“Ages ago, the land here was involved in a huge war between mortals and gods, led by a Tyrant whose iron rule seeked to destroy all divine and those who lived under their guidance. Whether they were evil and seeking to destroy, or benign and seeking to thrive. As the war got worse and more destructive, several groups tried to rise up to oppose the Tyrant’s armies, with a group of 5 heroes being the ones to lead the charge of the insurgency. There was the Fierce Meele, he took the brunt of attacks and struck back with his weapons of great reach and untold strength. There was the Agile Ranger, who struck the enemy from a distance with precise shots using his massive array of weapons. The Mystic Mage, who had a unique ability within, used her arsenal of artifacts and mana to unleash massive attacks of powerful magic. The Loyal Summoner who commanded a horde of beasts to overwhelm the enemy. And The Furtive Rogue, who slipped past the enemies' attacks as if he was invisible and delivered the final blow with the greatest of strikes. They opposed the Tyrant with all of their might, but even they couldn't finish the fight, and so, before they perished under his greatest soldier, the heroes split their power and used it to bless Terraria with strength that would empower those who chose their calling in hopes that someone else would take it upon them to challenge the Tyrant." Maxwell finished. "If you wish to fight against the monsters, it would be a good idea to find which one of the 5 you would prefer to follow.”
“What if instead we chose to use all of them?” Aubrey asked, smirking. I could tell that she was already to cheat the system of this world at the first chance she would get.
“You could, but that would be unwise, the heroes only allow for their strength to be gathered if the person using them is completely dedicated to their calling, to taint them by using multiple weapons would lower your strength.” Aubrey’s smile deflated as she frowned.
"If we believe all of this, how would we know who has magic and who doesn't?" Kel asked, confused, and he had a solid point.
"Terraria is filled with magic all over, even some of the powers assigned to the other warriors have magic of some kind, it's just that some people have the inclination to master the arcane, the Mage wasn't know just for using magic, she was known for managing to exploit it to its fullest extent. I would advise you to use a wand or a magical artifact to see who would be more inclined to possess such magicks. I also want to address another topic. Terraria itself uses many defensive mechanisms to ensure that a balance is kept and upheld at all costs. I warn you of this because as you travel you will find lingering traces of the result of this. However, much of the balance and struggle between light and dark is trapped within a great guardian sealed down where nobody would find it. If you have questions about this world do not hesitate to ask me, but as for now. I feel it is only right if you rest. I am sure that what I have said has confused you, a first time learning about this world’s nature would certainly be a shock, even for me.”
Maxwell walked towards the door and was ready to head out, opening the door and stepping out before he turned to look at us “I’ll check up on you all in the morning, try and catch some shooting stars in the ceiling if you feel brave enough!”
As the guide closed the doors, we all looked at each other with confused faces, as we tried to process what he told us.
“Shooting.. stars?” Kel stood up and walked towards the staircase, and as he approached the window, he looked at the night sky outside, staring around until he was suddenly jumpscared by a zombie who jumped from below, scratching at the window and groaning, only for a cartoony glowing star to fall from the sky at terminal velocity and slam itself on the enemy, splattering the zombie's, brains all over the window, before Kel fell to the floor and went into fetal position with a blank expression.
“I hate it here.”