Knife against a Flower; Memories of a Lover

by huskynotwolf

Summary:

“Do you ever wonder if the Spawn is all just…y’know…fake?” He had said as they sat at the cliff, watching the stars as he fingered his scarf.

“Are…are you doubting the promise the Spawn has given us?” Two says. There’s a mix of doubt, confusion, disbelief and faintly…Azure senses disappointment. “We will be given a second life, as loon as we remain faithful to the Great Spawn. They are otherworldly, are they not? The supernatural shall do things beyond our mortal comprehension, things we are not meant to fully grasp nor understand.”

꥟ ꥟ ꥟

I've searched high and low for an Azuretime role swap and still haven't found a single one so far, so I've decided to take matters into my own hands. Please enjoy this fic I spent three weeks working on and the reason I've been neglecting my other fics.

First Forsaken fic, not really sure if this is going to work so keep in mind there might be some OOC.

Chapter 1: Nightshade

Azurewrath wasn’t exactly sure how exactly he and Two Time met each other. Two had said it was during a particularly stormy day on his field of nightshades, but if he remembered correctly it was something about him sneaking away from a praying session sometime in October and Two catching him trying to make a run for it, which ended in them also following him and running for it. They ended up getting caught by Amarah, but they made a friend out of each other in the meanwhile. He was nearing the age of fourteen when they first met, and they were about nine. 

He remembered when Two still practically lived for the Spawn (they grew up inside it, after all), doing anything they could to try and please the Spawn. They would pray, do rituals, pray again and basically do all sorts of things that was extremely unhealthy of them to commit at such a young age, though according to what Amarah had told him the kid has probably and most likely done a lot worse than just doing rituals at the ripe age of six. Azure himself on the other hand barely did any of them. He spent most of his time on his field of flowers, tending to them and avoiding people in general. He usually only gets dragged out once in a while when something important happens, though often he’d find ways to avoid even that from happening. That one time, however, he couldn’t find any way to leave because Amarah themselves had personally dragged him out from his hiding place and sat him down in a prayer session.

Throughout the first half of the session, Azure still managed to properly focus on that day’s prayers but eventually (not even fifteen minutes in) he got too bored and began zoning out. He was sitting at the very back of the church hall, so a bit of back and forth banter in his head later he decided it would be fine to sneak out and away off to Cerulean’s forest to hide. He didn’t have much of a plan but he knows Cerulean usually doesn’t mind him wandering around and poking at different species of flowers that he sees in the wild.

At first he thought sneaking out during the readings, but after a brief while he decided it would be best to act during the offering segment, when the most commotion was stirring and everyone would be up on their feet walking around. It was a few minutes from now, so he gathered up his things as silently as he could and as soon as people began standing up he made his move and made a mad dash for the exit like he’s escaping. (He probably is. Doesn’t really matter, though.)

He slipped through the exit and started picking his way through the church’s hallways and rooms, trying to find his way back outside. He made it to the ground level and was just about to run for the church’s main entrance when he heard a voice. It was quiet, barely louder than a whisper but haunting and small. “I thought you were supposed to be at the prayers.” 

Azure yelped and jumped in surprise, whirling around trying to see who it was. His heart rate instantly skyrocketed at the thought that it might be Amarah, but instead in front of him is a skinny, pale-skinned kid with a black shirt and slightly lighter pants. He looked several years younger than him, with weird bony wings and a tail growing out of his back and coccyx that resembled more of blades than feathers. Bandages and other cloth wrapped layers on his arms, fingerless gloves on his hands and a belt holding something across his waist.

“Y-yeah,” he stammered. “I’m just about to leave, so if you don’t mind…” He slowly inched away from them, trying to get away. 

They tilted their head sideways, confused. “I thought it was still continuing.” They said, and Azure had to strain to hear their words. “Thank the Spawn I found you, then. We should head back.”

He shakes his head, trying to keep quiet. He barely sees anyone other than Cerulean, which wasn’t even in the cult, so he hasn’t got the slightest clue who this kid is. “No, you don’t get it,” he said. “I’m leaving, because…” Quick, think of an excuse! “I’ve already finished the required rituals. I’m on my way out of here.”

“Out of the church?” They whisper. “Am— the Spawn does not allow us access outside the church premises.”

“You’ve never been outside of the church, kid?” Azure asked.

They shake their head. “And you are granted access?”

Azure pauses. How should he reply? “Y-yeah. More or less. I’m heading off to the forest, and I have to hurry.” He lies.

“…if the great Spawn permits, can I come with you?”

That’s new. “Y-yeah, of course! Why not?” He says, then motioned towards the entrance. “There’s no one guarding, so we got to take this opportunity and make a run for it.” Before they could respond, Azure grabbed the younger’s arms and pulling them along, made a mad dash for the exit of the church. The other struggled to keep up, yelping while barely avoiding tripping, but eventually managed to start running on his own feet instead of getting dragged along by the older.

Brick paths changed to grassy dirt clearings, then eventually morphed into towering trees as they got closer to the forest. Birds sing in branches above. Fallen leaves littered the ground, making this satisfying crunch every time any of the pair stepped on it. The kid seemed to enjoy making those noises like they’ve never heard them before, which Azure doesn’t blame them but judging from what they had said earlier they’ve possibly never even been in the wild before.

A while of hopping around and crouching down to observe every little plant they see, they speak up again. “What is your name?”

“Oh…” It never occurred to him that he still hasn’t told them his name, nor had he asked for theirs’. “It’s Azurewrath. You can call me Azure.”

The kid stepped on another dried leaf. “… they call me Two Time.” They said. 

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Azure found out about Two’s dagger about two weeks after first meeting them, though only knew about its true intentions nearly an entire year later. At first Two had said it was used for rituals and it was given to them by Amarah, though they have never used it because it was never called for. They hung out a lot because Azure found Two comforting to be with, and Two stayed because according to him it was an opportunity to get away from Amarah. Sure, they were indeed their guardian but all they ever talked about was the Spawn while Azure would talk a lot about nature and plants and all that kind of stuff no one used to talk to him about.

It was during that night when Azure offered to sneak out into the forest and that field of flowers he (with a little help from Cerulean) had secretly planted together, but Two politely declined because “Amarah had told them to stay behind and help them with a ritual they were doing”. They usually wouldn’t turn down an offer to hang out with each other, but if they did it often meant something bad or important was going to happen. Knowing Two, it most likely had something to do with the Spawn in all of its glory.

So he decided to follow them to see what was so important that they had to cancel their meeting together. (Maybe Azure was just jealous, but he was curious to know what Amarah is doing at midnight of all times. With a child, too.) He knew Two had that strange ability to somehow always be able to keep tabs of their surrounding and be able to tell if anyone was sneaking up on them, so he had to be extremely careful. 

Hanging around the vents of the church for hours on end proved to be useful after he caught sight of Two Time sometime at one in the morning, with them carefully slinking towards the basement area that most other cultists couldn’t usually enter. At one point, they glanced around to see if they were being followed, and Azure nearly gave himself away when he shuffled in the vent, trying to hide and stay still, hoping they couldn’t see him. They moved on with doing anything else, so he assumed he was safe.

He waited until they had disappeared behind the doors of the basement, then crawled out of the vent to follow them. The basement led to a long stairwell, and some sort of weird glow illuminated from the bottom of the flights. It was warm, orange and it flickered, so he assumed it was candlelight. There was speech too, so instead of following them down he decided to stay at the topmost flight in order to make quick escape when needed. It would be bad for both himself and Two if the older cultist found out.

There’s muffled screaming from the bottom of the stairwell, something Azure was uncalled for. There wasn’t panic in any of the other voices in the basement, so he could only assume it was coordinated. (Why would there be screaming, though…? That’s not normal—)

“…the dagger. Do you have it?” A voice said. Calm, controlled.

“…” There was a long pause, then a barely audible reply that Azure didn’t catch. The first voice speaks up again in a stern, strict voice. “Good. The ritual is ready. All we are missing is your part, child.” It was demanding, but also parent-like. Amarah. “A-are you sure…?” Two Time’s voice shook when they said that. Uncertain, doubtful. Something Azure knows from experience that the older cultist doesn’t like. “If I were to take the life of an individual, won’t the Spawn—“ They were cut off abruptly by the older.

“Do you not believe in the Spawn’s resurrection?” Amarah says firmly, and Two squeaks. “A life must be exchanged for granting you your second life. The Spawn will be pleased only if you are willing to make the sacrifice.” The screams go louder. Sacrifice? What do they mean by that? If there is a sacrifice, then surely it would be for something like a ritual, right? No, scratch that. What if it was a ritual, and — there’s chanting. Why is there chanting?

More mumbling, then an absolutely guttural scream cuts through the once-silent basement, making Azure flinch. More chants and prayers are heard, then eventually the scream faded into faint gurgles and coughs.

Azure quietly slips out of the door and runs for the forest, away from the entire church complex. He wants to know what happened in that basement, but he couldn’t bear to keep hearing. He’ll have to ask them in the morning, assuming they’re willing to open up.

 

When he brings it up the following day, Two only replies with “I wish not to tell, nor does the Spawn wish to unravel these secrets I hold.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Two Time is a very secretive person. Secretive and mysterious, but relatively easy to read compared to the other cultists. Four years later, they’re still the same. Azure could tell what they were feeling about something based on their expressions but he’d never know the true meaning behind it. Sure, they were a terrible liar and gives themselves away from all that awful fidgeting and fingering of their dagger, but often times they would still refuse to spill even after Azure had told them that it’s alright to tell him. They’ve never openly told him anything about their childhood, so he never pushes him to do so.

The only things he’d gotten out of them is that they’re terrible at cooking (they had nearly set the entire communal kitchen on fire the last time they tried), Amarah gave them that dagger when they reached the age of six and they like Azure’s company a lot more than Amarah’s. Sometimes though, they’d sill decline meetups in the forest and his now personal cabin and field of nightshades because their mentor and parent figure had called them away to do extremely suspicious things, but half the time it would just be a false alarm and they were just called off to do chores around the church. (At first he didn’t believe fourteen year old still had to do chores, but then it turned out to be true when Amarah flatly told him about it the time he had asked)

Azure sometimes feel like the exact opposite of Two. Carefree and open, unbothered, always there to get himself in trouble. Two had joked about them being just like a magnet, when two polar sizes meet and attract each other, and he completely agrees.

They spent a lot more time together as they slowly grew older, and after a while Azure noticed Two had stopped spending as much time as they used to on prayers and rituals, rather choosing to stay with Azure even when he’s doing the most boring things imaginable. They’d gotten themselves into more trouble compared to before they met him, but they eventually took on Azure’s habit of not giving a fuck about what the other cultists think.

He also managed to get Two into botany. He’s been nicknaming them “Timey” for their last name. They retaliate by calling him “Nightshade”, after his favourite flowers.

Eventually, Two Time became a little more open and willing to talk, though half of the time it’s still Spawn-related and they still weren’t willing to open up about their past. Azure still never pushes them to do so.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Cerulean finally met and exchanged with Two Time for the first time since Azure has dragged them with him into her forests. She didn’t have much to say but did comment on them being a “freak” for how silent and creepy they are.

He laughed it off, but from the looks Two gave Cerulean they didn’t look like they appreciated the comment. 

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Sometimes they’d go to the cliff at the edge of the forest and watch the stars at night because there weren’t any light pollution in the country-side. They would silently sit there and enjoy the view while they talk about all the things they’ve been doing when they weren’t together, and what they’d do together when they grow up and see for themselves the rest of the world outside the church. Occasionally Two would ask the question of what might happen on their second life, to which most of the time Azure would answer with that whatever happens, they’d still be together.

He doesn’t believe in a second life. No matter how many times he’d told them, they’d only brush it off and say he’s just unfaithful enough to see what the Spawn has granted them. A lot of times he’d ended up thinking about what they’d said. Is he unfaithful, or is it really just on the subject of the second life? Azure firmly believes the Spawn is a giver of life, because what else are They if they aren’t a giver? But it is impossible to grant someone life once more if it was taken from them already. Once their heart stops beating, what use is there to keep breathing?

He told them this on their sixteenth birthday. “Do you ever wonder if the Spawn is all just…y’know…fake?” He had said as they sat at the cliff, watching the stars as he fingered his scarf. They’ve snuck a cake out with them, and it’s remains rested next to the pair on two paper disposable plates.

Two snapped around to stare at Azure with that hard, blank stare of theirs’. “What are you…implying, dear Azure?”

“I mean…it’s not possible to bring life back to a corpse that had stopped breathing, right?” He kept mumbling, slowly unravelling his scarf from his neck. “Don’t get me wrong, but a stopped heart can’t be restarted. The Spawn might grant us and…everything else…life, but it’s not possible to bring it back when it’s gone.”

“Are…are you doubting the promise the Spawn has given us?” Two says. There’s a mix of doubt, confusion, disbelief and faintly…Azure senses disappointment. “We will be given a second life, as loon as we remain faithful to the Great Spawn. They are otherworldly, are they not? The supernatural shall do things beyond our mortal comprehension, things we are not meant to fully grasp nor understand.”

Azure chuckled. “Yeah. Or that.” He turns to meet their steady gaze. “That was more of a thought, you know? I fully believe in the Spawn, and so does Cerulean and the others, but it’s just…never mind.” He sighs, then waves his hand dismissively. “As I said, just a thought.”

“Just a thought.” Two echoes. That hint of doubt is still apparent, but this time they were fingering that double edged dagger again. “The Spawn does not incline to those who doubt their teachings.” They mumbled. “If so then…won’t their sacrifices all the be merely in vain?” The last sentence was spoken in barely a whisper, more of a muse to themselves. He decided to ignore their question, but he couldn’t help but wonder what they mean by “sacrifice”.

“Hey,” Azure says, waving his hand in front of Two to catch their attention. “I want you to have my scarf. Consider it a…birthday present, I guess.” He gently places his faded purple scarf onto their lap, patting it then watching as they curiously pick up the fabric in their hands.

They slowly wrap it around their neck, delicately and carefully. “T-thank you very much, Nightshade.”

“I…do not know of ways to repay this.”

He only chuckles. “You don’t have to. It’s a gift, Timey. It’s for you.”

Chapter 2: Dagger

Two Time didn’t meet up with him in the forest like they had planned that morning. Instead, Amarah had pulled Azure aside when he had passed by his room before he could leave the church.

“Azure, I want a word with you.” He had said. That sentence alone made his blood run cold; no matter how much trouble he got himself into, never had he ever been confronted by Amarah face to face like this. Thinking quickly, he decided to go with a simple “Yes?” in reply. Then, “I thought Timey was with you?”

“Timey-The child?” Amarah says, confused, then shakes his head. “I will regard that matter later. They…insisted on preforming their ritual alone.” The mentor turned his attention back to him. “I have questions regarding something they have brought up a period of time ago, and it is quite…worrying.”

In addition to his blood metaphorically and slowly turning to ice, his heart sinks upon hearing the older’s words. “The-they brought up something?” He says, pretending to be confused.

“The child had mentioned something along the lines of…doubting the granting of your second life.” Amarah said. “They had confided me on something you have stated before, in turn making them confused about the teachings of the Great Spawn.” He sounded genuinely concerned, instead of the usual facade used to trick people into doing things “in the name of the lords of the Spawn.”

“T-that was just a thought, Amarah!” Azure said quickly. “I didn’t really mean what I said, it was just something I was thinking about and I said it out loud by accident.”

The older mentor sighed. “Listen child, I know you may have not mean to say so, but you are aware of the consequences that comes with your word.” He said calmly. “I know you are loyal to the Spawn, despite your…strange (he wrinkles his nose in distaste) methods of praise and offering, but this…” He trailed off, then placed a hand on Azure’s shoulder. 

“I’ve been meaning to say this to you for quite some time now. I’ve seen your relationship with my apprentice, a desperate soul seeking their second life. We have searched and tried methods across the Spawn’s holy book, and they have shown and proven many times their devotion towards the Spawn; yet despite their efforts, no matter the sacrifice, they are still yet to be granted passage to their second rebirth. 

“Azure, you have reached the end of your pilgrimage under my wing, but there is still one more test of devotion left for you to prove to the lords of the Spawn, and in order to secure your rebirth into your second life.” Amarah breathes in, as to steady himself before announcing some terrible news.

“You have to sacrifice the one you hold dear to the Spawn, to show your eternal devotion and allow both of you to ascend into your second life.”

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Azure couldn’t stop thinking about what Amarah told him. He didn’t sound like he was joking, nor was he trying to wish Two ill. He knows very clearly who the one he referred to as “the one he holds dear” is, but he couldn’t even bring himself to kill anything at all, let alone his childhood friend.

Two seemed oblivious to the struggle he was in. Probably because he had never told them of his encounter with the mentor, but he had wished that he would at least be able to tell from the body language. Apparently, they were absolutely terrible at that skill, because they’ve missed important clues over and over again every time they asked if Azure was fine.

He was in fact, not fine. On one hand, he had to prove himself loyal to both the Spawn, if what the mentor said about ascension and his second life was true, and Two, for fulfilling their wish to be granted their second life. On the other, he doesn’t want to get his best friend’s blood on his hands. Heck, he doesn’t want anyone’s blood on his hands.

He doesn’t tell Two about the encounter yet.

No one has to die if he doesn’t do what Amarah told him to do.

No one has to die if he didn’t believe in the Spawn.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Cerulean is missing. No matter how far and wide he searched, Azure couldn’t find his druid friend and fellow botanist no matter how hard he tried. It was like any trace of her had been purged from existence altogether.

He told Two Time about this, and they both held a small funeral in her name to honour her efforts in the forest and for the Spawn.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

It’s been several months since the Amarah encounter, and two months since Cerulean went missing.

There’s something off about Two Time. Azure isn’t sure what it is, but it became more frequent for Two to start missing their meetings. They’ve missed at least five at this point, so when Two declined again after Azure offered to go out on the fields together that night he figured something has to be wrong. Plus, every time they actually manage to meet up, his partner always has this strange metallic, tangy smell on their clothes that never seemed to go away. They’ve never had it before, and he has no idea what it might be. (It could be…that, but he didn’t want to skip to conclusions so quickly. Two wouldn’t kill someone. He’s sure of it.) He wanted to confront their mentor on it, because he was the person who knows the most about Two, but strangely enough it was Amarah who knocked on the door to his cabin that night instead.

(He looked out of breath. Something must be wrong.)

“A-Azure.” He panted as the younger opened the cabin doors to let the older in. His left arm is bleeding, strangely enough, accompanied by a long unnatural slash that ran across his arm ripped through some of his clothing. They were sweating, eyes frantic and darting around, high on alert. “Azure, you have to listen to me.”

“What’s wrong?” The younger shut the door behind him, and sat him down on a chair by the dining table, which he waved away dismissively. “Azure,” he repeated instead. “Remember what I have said. Sacrifice the little one you hold dear to the Spawn, to grant you both your second life. Only the person who one treasures most dearly grants them of their rebirth, as a sign of their devotion to the lords.” he said urgently, and for once underneath his usual stern voice, this was laced with something other than the strict, demanding voice of a parent.

There’s fear. Fear, desperation and urgency.

“I…” Azure hesitantly steps away. “How about I get something to help you with that arm?” He says, then turns to rummage through his many shelves usually for storing seeds to pull out a medical first-aid box. It takes him a while, but he finds it eventually.

“Do you think you can tell me how you got that—“ he said while turning around to face Amarah again, then froze and cut himself off mid-sentence.

He’s no longer there. In his place was only the chair he had sat in, and a trail of fresh crimson blood leading outside of the cabin and into the darkness of the night and of his nightshade fields, the door left ajar unlike how he had originally left them. He nearly drops the first-aid box out of shock, so cradling it in his arms he peered his head out of the cabin to see where he might have disappeared off to.

The trail disappears a few metres away from the cabin. All he hears is the chirping of crickets.

His heart sinks.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

“Dear Nightshade, have you been informed of the recent disappearances?” Two Time says as they stared into the void. They’ve been doing that a lot these days, fading and drifting away mentally every so often. Azure wishes he knows what happened so he could help them.

They’re sitting on that cliff side they always used to hang out at, watching the valley in front of them and as usual, talking about what weird new thing has happened in the church that neither of them mustn’t have known. It wasn’t particularly hot that day, and the sun was behind them. The events from the night before still hasn’t quite registered to him, so they chose to ignore it for now. Maybe Amarah just somehow found his way back to the church while not bleeding everywhere. 

Regarding their question, however… “Disappearances?” He echoes.

“Correct. I did not catch sight of my mentor at all in the requested meeting space I was required to be at.” Two said, re-focusing back to reality. “I have been searching for him but…I bear no fruit of success from my attempts.”

“Cerulean’s missing too.” Azure said. “Have you seen her around?”

There was a pause, then, “The druid?” They ask hesitantly, to which he nods in confirmation. They stare off into the abyss for another few seconds, then sighed. “I have not. She does not enjoy my company nor my presence.” They said. “I would not have found reason to approach her of all people.”

“Huh.” He mumbled. “I did see Amarah yesterday, Timey.” He sees Two tense in the corner of his eye when he says that. “Maybe he was out with me during that time you were supposed to see him.” He doesn’t know whenever he should mention the mentor’s words from last night. (It’s more of that he doesn’t want them to worry)

There was a long pause. “Perhaps.” They said thoughtfully, a little grin stretched across their face. Their dagger rested on their lap, clutched in their hands like they were afraid someone might take it from them. He usually doesn’t think much about it, mostly because they were extremely sensitive on the subject; this time however, there was something different with the pristine silver surface of the blade.

There’s splatters of russet on the flat of the blade. The edge is still clean as ever but those faded flecks of colour didn’t look like they were from food or paint or anything of the sort. He has a sinking feeling that it could be something else entirely. 

He really should ask. 

He doesn’t know if he should. 

“Two?” He says. “What’s that on your dagger?” And that sentence alone makes the other instantly snap out of whatever trance they were in. They spun their head around to stare at Azure, then down at the dagger in their hand. Their face goes through shock, confusion, then instantly morphs into horror before it was quickly replaced by neutrality. Their smile doesn’t change.

“Ah. I must have…not purged of all grime from my dagger.” Two Time says calmly, then attempted to rub away whatever substance was left of the blade on their dagger with their clothes. They don’t give it much thought, but Azure’s mind raced with all possibilities that might’ve caused said substance to remain on their weapon. 

The russet looks unsettlingly like dried blood. 

“That’s blood isn’t it, Two?” He asked. They immediately stiffen, then cease trying to clean their dagger. They stared at it for a moment, then slowly look back up at him. 

“Possibly the remainder of a ritual I performed some time ago.” They said. “The Spawn required a sacrifice from me.” They inspected the flat of their blade, flipping it over and watching sunlight reflect off the surface. 

“…what sort of sacrifice?” He’s growing more and more concerned and suspicious by the moment. Maybe the blood was just from a wild animal that they’ve used in the ritual. Maybe he’s overthinking it.

He’s not sure. He hopes it’s not what he thinks it is.

He doesn’t know.

Two doesn’t answer. They avoided his hard glare, keeping that strange, unnerving smile plastered across their face. 

“Two, what did you do?”

“The Spawn has spoken, dear Azure.” They said. Still smiling. “The Spawn has enlightened me with Their teachings, and in turn I must repay the favour. Their sacrifice will not be in vain, but shall guide us further on our path of a second life.”

He takes a minute to fully process their words. “Hold up.” He says, frowning. “‘Their’? What do you mean by…”

Their sacrifice will not be in vain.

“Two Time, did you kill someone?”

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

No one has to die if he they didn’t do what Amarah told him them to do.

He’s running through the flower field, away from the forest and away from Two.

No one has to die if he didn’t believe in the Spawn.

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe Two was referring to something else. But Two isn’t the person to lie; they know what they said, and they usually mean it.

No one has to die if No one has to die if they stopped sacrificing things.

Something brushes past his legs as he slows down, trying to catch his breath. A purple, blossoming flower with an unripened fruit inside, the petals spread outwards like a starfish and something he’s come to see a million times before.

No one else has die if they didn’t believe in the Spawn.

No one else has to die if they didn’t—

He stops in his tracks, eyeing a cluster of the flowers that sat in front of him on the ground. 

He remembered what he had read about these flowers, a long time ago. Every part of a belladonna is poisonous. That was why he wore boots every time he went into the fields, as a safety precaution.

No one has to die if they stopped sacrificing things. But if they live on, they’ll keep doing so.

Pulling on a pair of gloves, he slowly starts collecting bits of the nightshades’ fruit and flowers.

Sacrifice the one I hold dear to the Spawn. That’s what Amarah said. 

They’d both be able to continue on into their second life this way.

This isn’t right.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

It was a simple but genius plan, really. At least, he thinks so. Cook something for Two, add in the crushed berries he’d collected from the night before and hope that they’ll somehow eat them. Simple, effective, and is extremely likely to kill.

He doesn’t want to do it.

Azure desperately hopes it’ll work. Two’s usually the one with the knife, even though he’s the one who’s the troublemaker. He still wishes that they were referring to something else, something that isn’t human, but he knows damn well that the truth is exactly as he feared. (It made him think back to all those years ago, when he’d first overheard Amarah and Two in the church’s basement.) 

He’s never actually done a ritual before. Heck, he’s never even offered the Spawn anything except flowers and plants that he had grown and harvested. Most of the time it was just to please Amarah and make him shut up about “not showing the lords of the Spawn his devotion”, and half the time it wasn’t even him who does the ritual itself, but rather Two. Maybe whatever method there was to let someone into their second life was scribbled somewhere in an instruction manual that might somehow provide a step by step tutorial on how to reincarnate someone, though if that exists then it might as well be somewhere inside Two’s absolute mess of a room.

He doesn’t know. He doesn’t think it’s right.

It’s seven at night. He’s invited them over to his cabin for dinner, trying his best to make something for them. They had both settled on just eating pasta after a while of discussing. Two was staring out the window, like they were deep in thought. Their dagger rested on their lap, their hand placed on top of the handle like they’re ready to strike at a moment’s notice. Their tail flicked slowly, wings folded behind their back as usual.

He wanted to talk to them. He doesn’t know how to start. 

(His palms were sweating and his eyes kept darting over at Two by the window) He decided to start with who they killed.

“Timey?” 

“Yes, Nightshade?” He flinched at the nickname, though he quickly hid it. 

“I’m sorry for running off yesterday, Timey.” He said, not taking his eyes off the vegetables he was cutting up. (He was scared to use meat.) “I just…got a little scared.”

Two’s head doesn’t move, but he could feel their gaze burn into his back. “You need not to worry, Nightshade. The Spawn forgives you, no matter what. You need not to worry, nor to be scared, dear friend.”

“I…I just…” Azure sighed. “I don’t know. Ugh.” He stops, and puts the knife. “What you said yesterday. Who did you kill?”

“‘Kill’ is a strong word. I have simply granted them the path to their second life.” Two says calmly. “It is a blessing. A blessing the Spawn has now bestowed upon them.”

He picked up the knife again, watching Two from the reflection on the blade. They played with their dagger, their tail still slowly slithering on the ground like a snake. The multiple blade-like bone plates that sparsely laid along their spines made them look a lot more dangerous than they appeared, though to Azure they looked more like a liability to their movement and agility. When he first met them, he remembered that those spikes used to a lot smaller, and he’d never paid much mind to them before; now they looked a lot more apparent than before, though their wings stayed the same: massive bone blades that were grown in a shape of wings, but if the feathers were solid slates of bone.

“I just want to know who, not why.” Azure said, then kept preparing the food. He tossed the food into the pot, then while continuing to make the food he kept snatching glances at his best friend from across the room.

“I wish to not disclose that information, but I have assisted in the ascent of my dearly departed mentor.”

Holy Spawn. They actually killed Amarah. “Then…” He tries not to make it obvious that he’s trying to poison and potentially kill his best friend as he secretly tipped the vial of crushed nightshades into the food. He secretly prayed to the Spawn hoped that they wouldn’t be able to see the vibrant violet petals of the flower, though most traces of the poison existing slowly disappeared after a while. “What’d you do after killing someone? Do you just burn them…or do you just hide their body somewhere?” He figured that (possibly) being their one and only friend they’d at least tell him a thing or two about how they’d somehow disposed of the bodies, so after stopping Two he could at least pay them his respects afterwards.

“I would…take them out into the forests.” They said, though it was hesitant. This time Azure can’t tell if it’s a lie or not. “The others do not approve of my ways, but their unfaithfulness to the Spawn shall not waver my loyalty.” Their tail glided back and forth across the floorboards, though the action didn’t exactly display irritation of any sort. “The forest to the west has proven to be a rather desirable and suitable for my cause. A ritual is often placed in a clearing where nothing shall combust in case of a misstep and the body of the blessed is laid to rest there in awaiting the arrival of their second life.”

“Combust—do you cremate them or something?” Tries to keep it light, though he’s not sure he could hold the facade any longer.

They shrugged. “The rituals require the use of candles. Has Amarah not taught you anything?”

“Even if I did, you know damn well I never paid attention.”

“True, I suppose.” The double-edged ritual dagger is now somehow lodged into the cabin’s dining table, and they were now staring at a picture of the pair that they took a long while ago. “I would do the necessary prayers and procedures, cleanse them of their sins and lay them to rest.”

“Then after that? Don’t people ever question it if they’re missing?”

There’s a slow pause. The cabin goes mostly silent apart from the sound of water bubbling. The food’s done.

“If they are to notice, then let it be so, although such occurrence is extremely rare.” They watched as Azure slowly put the food on their plate, oblivious to whatever he was plotting. He’d made himself a separate bowl of pasta earlier that wasn’t poisoned with his most common houseplant, though part of him wanted to just die alongside Two because all of this feels too wrong.

His hands shake when he hands the plate over to Two. They don’t notice it.

He sat down next to them, then starts poking around the food he made. Two quietly observed them for a while before slowly and hesitantly taking a bite, and he knows their fate is sealed.

Nothing happens for a while as they eat in silence, until nearly fifteen minutes later continuous and rigorous coughing is heard to Azure’s right. Two gripped the fork tight, hissing and gagging like they’ve just eaten something…off. He puts a hand on their shoulder, mumbling “what’s wrong?” and tries to show concern.

The sound of their ragged breathing is getting louder, and they drop the fork. It clatters to the floor but was left unattended to.

Azure’s never actually seen the effects of nightshade poisoning before. He only knows it has the capability to kill someone if certain amounts is ingested, but this has to be the first time he’s seen its effects in real time.

Two Time gags again, then tries to get up and head to the kitchen to get water. Their legs promptly gave out under them and they yelped as they crumpled to the ground, still coughing. They placed their hand on the wooden chair for support as they slowly attempted to crawl back upright.

“W-what is t-this…?” They gasped, drawing in another raspy breath.

Azure freezes in his seat. His friend is dying in front of him, he knows this, but he doesn’t move an inch. (That’s probably already a sign he’s involved in all of this.)

They attempt to stand back upright again, and this time somehow manage to stand back up though their movements were sluggish and slower compared to the usual swift, quick movements. “A-Azure-? W-what have y-you done-?” They glare at him, then at the spiked food he had given them. “Why is everything—“

“They’re nightshades.” He said. Trying to stay calm, because this is all his doing. Because it is all his fault. “I-I had to. I’m sorry, Two Time.”

Their eyes narrow, and a grin eerily stretches across their face despite blood now spilling slowly from the corners of their mouth. The poison is getting to them. “I-I understand now,” they smile, though their speech was slurred. “The Spawn has enlightened you once more, to allow you the courage to grant one their second life, yet you have chosen to do so in selfishness instead.” They cut themselves off in a fit of coughing, blood steadily trickling out of them though they pay it no mind. Their wings are flared, blocking off the path to the door of the cabin. 

“No.” Azure said. Firmer. It’s not his friend he’s killing anymore, is he? He’s stopping a murderer. He has long since abandoned the ways of the Spawn, because they’re wrong. He should’ve known a long time ago. “I’m not letting you kill anyone else. Even if the Spawn really exists, It would never approve of murder among their followers. Killing anyone, no matter the cause, is wrong,”

Two Time’s smile cracks wider, wilder. Their tail abandoned its earlier coiled position and arched threateningly over their back, inbetween their wings and above their head like a scorpion’s stinger ready to strike. “Then you are a disbeliever; a disgrace to the Spawn and a traitor.” They spit out the last word, and in a newfound burst of strength despite the toxins now circulating in their blood they yank their dagger out of the wood it had embedded itself into and lunged at Azure, hand poised to stab the weapon into flesh. 

He doesn’t register the blade being driven into his chest immediately, but he does feel himself getting thrown onto the ground, being flung off the chair and pinned to the wooden floorboards of the cabin. Two Time held him down, their entire body weight crushing the botanist under them, their dagger plunged deep in flesh while wings arced over him like a bony cage trapping him inside. Their hands were shaking as they dug the blade deeper, earning a strangled cough from Azure as he felt the taste of copper slowly pool in his mouth.

They’re not the only one who’s dying anymore.

Two Time lets out an angry, inhuman snarl before yanking the dagger back out from him, dropping it and stumbling backwards. The weapon clatters to the floor like the fork from before, forgotten by its owner as they dropped to the floor on their knees, tail thudding heavy and dead onto the floorboards. Azure briefly sees a look of sorrow and regret in their eyes as they glance at his now rapidly bleeding body, but anger and betrayal almost immediately replaces all signs of pity or forgiveness left in them. They hiss in annoyance as they gag and throw up, now hunched over in pain the poison of the plant gradually takes over their body.

Azure isn’t doing any better himself. He was quickly losing blood, not to mention his chest had just been torn into and he was pretty sure his heart had also been damaged in the process. He can’t tell. Everything’s so…woozy.

They stumble again, accidentally knocking over a shelf of flowers that Azure kept. Their tail was dragged along, knocking off even more things and causing a massive mess in the cabin. They have a hand on their head like they were having a migraine, but he doesn’t know for sure.

He deserved this, really. He was the one who poisoned Two Time in the first place. It made sense for them to be angry at him, though he was pretty sure they stabbed him for all the wrong reasons.

At least he did something worthwhile when he was still alive. He’ll die knowing no one else shall suffer the same fate as those who fell to the hands of his…closest friend.

Why is he on the floor again? He doesn’t really remember anymore.

He’s better off if he doesn’t anyways. If he dies, he doesn’t have to live with the memory of killing him anymore.

They vomit again, then scrunches up their face in pain. More sounds of things being destroyed, crashes of pots and the body of the other cultist slamming into walls.

His vision is fading, and he’s getting light-headed. It feels like the entire room’s spinning. He doesn’t know if Two Time is feeling the same as he is right now, but he knows for a fact that a whatever they were experiencing has to be several times worse than his’.

 

Before everything goes to black, he hears them vomit one last time, then a loud thump as the other slumped to the ground, taking in one more shallow breath before their body stops twitching completely. 

Chapter 3: Purgatory

“Hey Elliot! We got a new survivor here!”

“Shed, I swear to god you better not be lying to me, you food-hogging bastard, this is the second time this—holy crud. You’re right.”

“I think y’all should give ‘em some space. They just got ‘re and they might need some time to get ‘emselves together.”

“You heard Builder. Back off. Chance, that means you too.”

 

He’s still alive, for whatever damn reason.

(Oh no. This isn’t supposed to happen!)

It’s like he’s been revived. He’s jolted back into reality, taking in a deep breath and sitting up from his earlier position. He doesn’t register himself breathing nor his heart suddenly resuming its function, but the pain from his chest wound is no longer there. Heck, even that tangy smell of blood is gone, like no one has ever been injured before. He waited until his vision slowly cleared and to finally stopped feeling like he was dying, he begins to actually process his surroundings.

For a start, he realised Two Time is gone. Their lifeless body is nowhere to be seen, and the cabin he was in right now doesn’t resemble the one he had lived in for most of his life. There’s a fireplace crackling softly by the wall, with a couch that looked as if it could fit at least six people on it facing said fireplace and stairs leading to the next floor. He could briefly see something that resembled slot machines and beanbags beyond the railing of the second floor, though that wasn’t what intrigued him the most.

Surrounding him are six different people who he’s very certain he’s never met before. They all wore things not even remotely similar to each other, like they’ve been dragged out of very different scenarios and placed here by some mysterious force. A guy with clothes that resembled the well-known Builderman stood closest, crouched down next to him and watching Azure with an extremely judgemental expression. Behind him, a guy in a pizza delivery costume and an avian with a shirt that wrote “Blame John” in bold red letters stood together, trying to peer over the first guy’s shoulder to take a look at “the new survivor.”

(Quick. Distract.)

“H-hello.” Azure decides to mumble.

The Builderman-looking guy narrows his eyes at him, then gruffly returns a short and curt “hi.”

“Hey new guy! What’s up with all the flowers?” Someone yelled, and almost instantly everyone turns to glare at him. “Chance! We make sure they feel safe first, ask questions later!” The pizza delivery man hissed. “Didn’t our experience with Guest teach you anything?”

“I was just curious, alright?” A guy dressed in a suit with a black coat, pants, sunglasses and a fedora, presumably Chance rolled his eyes. “Geez, calm down Elliot.”

“Uhh…” Azure rubs his neck awkwardly, and looked down on the stab wound in his chest to make sure it wasn’t that which had caused him to question “the flowers.” Sure enough, where the stab wound was originally situated now had a cluster of nightshades and vines creeping out from where blood had spilled out from, the plant wrapping and crawling all over his upper-left torso and left arm. He looked like he had been lying in his flowerbed for a whole year and just let all the plants grow all over him, though the vegetation itself didn’t seem to affect him. Strangely enough, his hat was still exactly where it was before, nestled smugly atop his head without any sign of damage done to the accessory. “I don’t know…? What is this place?”

The pizza delivery man scoffed. “God, wish I knew that too.” He said. “You alright?”

“Y-yeah. I suppose so.”

“Hey Builder, I think they’re fine enough to stand on their own.” A man in army camouflage clothes and a bulletproof vest said, sitting on the arm of the couch instead of the actual seats. The guy who was crouched next to him sighed and slowly stood back up to full height, offering out a hand to Azure to help him get up. “’n case you live under a rock, name’s Builderman.” He says. “Though they all just call me Builder.”

“Oh-“ Shit. He didn’t realise this was actually the real Builderman. Azure gratefully accepts their hand, using it to drag himself back to his feet. “It’s Azurewrath. Just call me Azure.”

(Forget.)

“Pleased to meet’cha.” He gives him a small smile in return, then turns to everyone else. “Be nice to the new guy, alright?” He says, then walks off towards a guy with a blue pumpkin for a head.

The pizza delivery man speaks up first. “They call me Elliot. Your go-to whenever you’re injured in a round.” He winked. “Also the local number-one n7 hater.”

“…what…?”

He laughed. “I also cook pretty much every meal for everyone.” He waved towards an area of the cabin that had a little blanket of smoke lingering by the ceiling, which none of the present people seems to remotely give a fuck about. “Shed helps a little sometimes, so I guess he’s not entirely a waste of space.”

“Hey! Excuse me? Of course I help!” The avian yelled. “At least I can stun the killer!”

“Yeah, and three of us can do that. Heck, I think even Chance gets more stuns than you do per round.” The man in the bulletproof vest rolled his eyes. “Your toothpick ain’t doin’ shit.” Turning to Azure, he added, “It’s Guest, by the way.”

The avian makes an offended face. “Wha—“ he stammered. “You don’t get to compare me to the gambler!”

Builderman sighed like he’s already heard this conversation a hundred times over. “Guest’s got a point.”

The avian gapes like a breached fish. “Y-you traitor!”

“Who’s…Shed?” Azure asked nervously, afraid someone might snap at him.

Elliot pointed at the avian, who was now trying to climb over the couch to get to Guest. “That’s Shedletsky. Absolute jackass and a waste of kitchen space. Then we have Chance the gambler,” he pointed at the man in the fedora and sunglasses, “Dusekkar the local wizard,” he pointed to the man in the blue pumpkin, “and 007n7 or n7 the hated,” he pointed to a man wearing a hamburger of sorts for a hat watching everyone from the top of the stairs, who upon hearing the words frowned and flopped on a nearby bean bag instead. “Noob’s probably in her cabin, though I don’t know for sure. By the way, we all share cabins here because we only got three of ‘em, so right now I share one with Chance, Builder shares one with Chicken Man and Pumpkin Wizard and n7 shares with Guest and Noob.”

“Okay…” Azure watched Shedletsky launch himself onto Guest, only for him to pummel the avian and throw him across the room. “So how do I leave?” 

“Great question!” The gambler Chance walked up to the pair, flipping a gold coin in one hand. “We don’t.”

“…what?”

Elliot shrugged. “Don’t say we didn’t try. As far as I know, we’re practically stuck here for eternity: Builder ’n Shed’s already tried all they could and even the hacker’s tried everything he could. Nothing seems to work, and same goes for the killers.”

“Killers?” Azure asked, head tilting. “…there’s killers here?”

“Yeah. Basically every once in a while we all get thrown into a “round” in which all eight—well, nine now that you’re here, of us have to try and survive for as long as possible until the timer ends without getting slaughtered by the killer of that round for eternity.” Elliot explained. “I think we have four killers right now, correct me if I’m wrong. There’s Jason who has machetes and is extremely willing to just butcher you, c00lkidd also known as n7’s demon child, another two kids called prettyprincess and bluudud, 1x the sniper and John Doe.”

“So you’re saying…I died just to get myself stuck in this weird place where we get hunted down forever?”

“More or less.” Chance rubbed his neck. “So how’d you die?”

Azure looked away. He doesn’t need another reminder of…that. He wants to just leave it behind and just move on without thinking any more about it, because no one here knows what he’s done. That also meant no reminders, no one knowing that he had killed his friend to try and— “I…uh…don’t really want to talk about it.”

Don’t mention it anymore. Fuck, forget the ordeal entirely. Then he won’t have to deal with the guilt anymore. 

“It got something to do with that?” Chance pointed at the cluster of foliage and petals protruding and erupting from his chest.

“Yeah.”

“Oh.” The gambler mumbled. “I got killed too. I think we’re the only ones who died before we got here, and Guest.”

“Guest looks…off.” Azure flinched as said survivor began wrestling Shedletsky onto the ground, with Dusekkar attempting to calm them both down and Builder trying to drag Guest off the avian.

“‘Ccording to him, he’s been in the army when he died. Explosion or something.” Elliot said. “Chance died from getting shot, though he doesn’t want to say anything else on that matter.”

“So if we can’t leave…I’m allowed to stay somewhere, right?” Azure asked.

Chance’s face instantly lights up. “Oh, fuck yeah! Heck, you can even stay at ours!” He said. “We actually got an extra bed space for you if you join us.” The former cultist winced at the swear, not being used to this new environment that didn’t apply the rules of the church of the Spawn.

“…alright then, I guess..” Azure says. “As long as you don’t mind the plants.”

Elliot laughed. “Hey, it’ll be fine. We all survived through this without breaking into each other’s cabins and slaughtering each other.” He patted the cultist’s back, then began to head towards the kitchen. “I’m sure you’ll fit in just fine. Even if a round comes by, just know that we’re more than welcome to help you out.”

(Distract. Forget.)

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

The first round he’s in was with the killer named Jason. He was dropped into this weird new expanse next to Guest, so the soldier began to patiently teach him everything about surviving, running, the best spots to hide and how to tick down that clock.

Azure doesn’t mention Two Time to him when they asked about their past. He doesn’t want to think about it anymore; he just wants to move on.

He does get mauled then killed about a minute into the round. It wasn’t exactly painful like what he went through when Two Time had stabbed him, but it was certainly quicker. 

He gets sent back into the cabin along with Chance, who had apparently died because his flintlocke had blown up on him while he was trying to fire it.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Elliot was right. They were actually just going to be stuck in this cycle of death and rebirth for god knows how long. 

He’s gotten used to life here already; he’s fast at adapting to new things, a skill he’s had even before he got to this weird limbo-like place. Getting killed was something that happened on the daily and something he’d already been used to after many, many rounds of screaming and running. Noob had taught him about these items that were scattered across the map, while Builder taught him to annoy the killer as much as possible by running circles around his sentries. 007n7, that man everyone seemed to hate, turned out to actually be rather pleasant to be with and he taught Azure all about ways to escape from tight corners, along with something resembling “break their ankles as much as possible, since you’re a survivor and not a sentinel.” He hasn’t exactly figured out how to use his abilities yet (according to Noob those exist) but relying on his preexistent skills he held up just fine compared to everyone else.

Azure’s not really sure about the time in this place, if that was one thing he couldn’t get used to. There wasn’t a day-night cycle in this limbo, instead is plunged in this continuous pitch-black “night” without a single star or another celestial body in the sky. He had later learned that the survivors had created some sort of time system that briefly marked when “day” and “night” might be, along with mealtimes and designated sleep hours for everyone. It was mostly for the convenience of the survivors who usually would make meals for everyone, though occasionally someone would forget the schedule and accidentally shift everyone else’s forward by three hours.

He tried to socialise with everyone else as much as he could whenever he had the time to do so, though most time was spent around Elliot and Chance as the pair would often be dragging the former cultist along with whatever weird thing they were about to do that day. Often times he’d be spared by rounds that interrupt them in the middle of conversations, while other times they would both continue to ramble on and on, only stopping until they head off to eat or sleep. He got along well with n7 after a lot of chatting during rounds when the pizza man had to run off to help someone, though while he’s rather pleasant to be around he still doesn’t get why Elliot seems to absolutely despise n7.

The shared cabin he stayed in with the pizza delivery man and the gambler was…messy, to say the least. When he moved in and started trying to make it as close to his original cabin as possible, he ended up clustering pretty much every shelf on his side of the cabin with pots and greens, flowers like carnations and poppies making the wall look more like someone had splashed multicoloured ink on his wall and left it that way to dry. He then had to move the pots to the floor because Chance had complained that “those pots are a falling hazard” after stepping on a pot shard in the middle of the night. He also kept around lanterns with candles inside around his portion of the cabin, though he’s been approached several times by the admins on whenever he had stolen the lanterns from outside or not, since they were necessary to make sure no one tripped over anything and cause unnecessary injuries while trying to make their way over to the main cabin.

He eventually figured out what his abilities were. All three of them were botany related much to his delight (if being stuck in this godforsaken place gives him any delight at all) though it made him a ‘sentinel’ instead of a ‘survivor’ due to his ability to now be able to magically summon and hurl puffballs, pollen, spores and violently purple nightshades at the killer’s eyes and face “hit back” at the killer. He could heal himself with herbs too, saving the healers the trouble of helping him patch himself up after getting hit.

Shedletsky later complained about how Azure was able to hit the killer more times than the self-proclaimed “SFOTH champion” himself, to which he replied by growing several puffballs on himself then tackling the admin in a flurry of pollen and spores.

 

The admin ended up with hayfever for the next week.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Forget, forget, forget.

It was easier said than done, but eventually it’s not more than a sliver of a memory.

Said memory being that gaping wound in his chest where the flowers bloom.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Azure first witnessed someone else arriving in this strange place with 007n7. The pair was hanging around the main cabin, with n7 poking around some of the old books that lay on the shelves and Azure doing his designated chores of the day by sweeping and dusting when all of a sudden a loud thud rang out from the ground floor area opposite of the campfire, and a mass of black cloth and little white wings fell from somewhere in the ceiling onto the floorboards. n7 jumped out of his skin when that happened, nearly dropping a book he was reading.

The mass of cloth laid there motionless for a brief while before stirring and slowly flopping over to face the ceiling. It’s a figure wearing nearly full-black robes, with gold lining edges of the cloth and his face was covered. White wings poked out of the robes, barely visible but there. Azure anxiously casted a glance at the hacker, not sure what to do next.

“Get Guest, I think.” He replied. “Hang on, go get everyone instead. They’d all want to see this.”

It didn’t take long for Azure to gather everyone in the main living area. It was about “midnight” when this happened, making everyone extremely agitated with the fact that their well-need sleep was disrupted by him yelling everyone’s name, though at the news of a new survivor joining their ragtag team they quickly brightened up.

“Hey, I recognise ya’! ’ts Taph!” Builderman said as soon as he caught sight of the newcomer. “How’dya end up ‘ere too?”

The person “Taph” freezes in place. Then slowly raises his hands to make several hand gestures, presumably sign language. Azure has never seen anyone use sign language before; back in the cult signing was unapproved of and greatly frowned upon for whatever strange reason they came up with, so no one used it in fear of being punished by the elders. Naturally he didn’t have a single clue about what this new person is saying.

Neither did everyone else apart from the former admins, apparently. “…what…?” Chance mumbled. “Did…any of you understand that?” The gambler eyed Noob, then to Elliot, who shrugged in reply.

“Hey Taph. You alright?” Builderman says instead. The person signs something back, taking a little longer and using even more hand gestures. The admin takes a moment to process the hand signs, then shook his head. “None of us knows, Taph. Wish we did, though.”

Taph’s hands drop to the ground, dejected. Azure felt their gaze sweep across everyone, then he points at him and placed his hand on his chin.

“Oh, I-I think I know this!” Noob spoke up, suddenly sounding excited. “He’s asking us who we are! I’m Noob; nice to meet you!”

The survivors eyed each other with uncertainty, clearly confused as to why the other would know how to sign, though they shrug it off and took turns introducing themselves. Luckily, there weren’t any interruptions unlike when Azure arrived, so he could sense that Taph seemed a lot more relaxed than tense.

Builder later explained that Taph is able to hear what everyone says, though he uses sign language to communicate. According to the admin, he used to be a demolisher working for him, as was great at making traps and mines. Elliot had made a comment of how they might be able to stun the killer by throwing bombs in their face, which the rest of the team agreed on, though their discussion was interrupted by Guest telling them that they should all go back to sleep due to it still being extremely late at night. The soldier also offered Taph to stay at their cabin, which for some reason still had an extra bed despite the fact that the cabin already had three residents. 

As everyone tiredly began lumbering back towards their cabin, Azure saw Builder chuckle and elbow the survivor. “You know sign language, yeah?”

Noob nods, happy and eager. Eyes sparkling.

“‘Guess you gotta teach the rest of ‘em.” The other smiles.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

“Hey flower kid, have you heard about the new killer?” n7 asked. A round had just ended not long ago, with c00lkidd being the killer.

Azure tilted his head. “We have a new killer?”

n7 shrugged. “I dunno.” He shuddered, glancing around quickly to see if anyone was looking his way or trying to overhear their conversation. “Kidd said something about there being new friends who were going to play tag with him. I asked him who they were, and he told me Uncle Noli and some creepy weird guy with some messed up wings was there.” He inspected a bruise on his side, possibly from a corrupt nature that managed to snipe him during the chase. “He seemed at least a little happy about Noli being there, because now there’s be someone to take care of him.”

“Noli?” Azure echoed. He’s never heard of this name before. “Who’s that?”

“He’s a hacker, like me.” n7 explained. “We were great friends back then, when we were both exploiters. We met through exploiting, then became best friends over it. He even helped me with c00lkidd ‘n all that, though I lost contact after…getting here.” He sighed. “Hopefully he picked up where I’d left off. I know he will.”

Azure nodded along, even though he wasn’t too interested. Every survivor and killer here were linked to each other somehow in one way or another: like how n7 is c00lkidd’s father, that man named Mafioso had this personal grudge with Chance or how Shedletsky has a certain something going on with 1x, though Azure couldn’t figure out what it was. Another killer with a personal relationship with n7 was certainly curious, but he wanted to know more about the other killer first. “Did you get what the other killer was called?”

007n7 shrugged. “Couldn’t. Kidd said everyone was kind of just scared of him when he first appeared. “Kept talking all weird and he didn’t want to play tag with him,”” he told him. “Even 1x was a little spooked by him. He allegedly ran off into the forest after arriving here, though I couldn’t get anything else out of him because Chance shot him and he went to chase him instead.”

“I don’t think anyone would want to play tag with Kidd.” Azure joked. The hacker laughed, then handed the other the medkit. He gratefully accepted it, then stared wrapping his hands with the bandage. 

“Yeah. You wanna bet on who the next killer is?” n7 asked, changing the subject. “Ten bucks its 1x.”

Azure grinned. “The money’s mine if it’s gonna be Doe.”

“Bet.”

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Forget, forget, forget.

He couldn’t bring himself to forget their face, but he does anyway.

It’s better to forget then reminisce.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Apart from rounds with Noli, the survivors didn’t seem to have any more interactions with the new killers. Taph had also finally made himself home in this limbo, and started slowly teaching everyone sign language in order for them all to understand him better. 

That day, they were trying their fastest to sketch up a proper plan because for some reason Elliot had gotten news that they were going to go against the new killer next round, though no name was given and neither was their fighting style. Guest instantly gathered everyone together and began theorising what this new killer might do, since he had figured they might have a new fighting style that could be different from everyone else. The group was contemplating on letting 007n7 run wild because so far the hacker is the only person who knows something about this new killer when all of them were abruptly thrown into the arena of the round, dropping Azure, Dusekkar and Shedletsky together and everyone else somewhere across the map. The wizard said something quick to the admin, then ran off towards a building in the distance. 

Azure takes a quick moment to survey his surroundings. Glass Houses, they have spawned in at, one of the many maps they’ve all come to be familiar with. There’s been a few more obstacles lying around the expanse, with more walls and rocks making hiding in corners and looping easier. He doesn’t know what this new killer’s fighting style was, so he couldn’t be certain if this change to the arena would benefit them more than the survivors. 

He decided to set off to look for n7. Might as well stick close to the hacker, because his survivor friend might be able to cover the sentinel in case he got low. (In hindsight, he sort of just wanted to stay close to one of his closest friends, though he never admits it because Elliot would scorn him like he’s got the plague.) He couldn’t find the survivalist, but he did quickly catch sight of his fellow sentinel (Chance) and support (Elliot) from a distance, hiding behind a ledge, so he chanced course and headed off to meet up with them. 

Chance wasn’t looking too good when he got closer. His waist had a nasty gash running across the side, his flintlock had already exploded on him and his coin was nowhere to be seen. He also looked nauseous, so whoever the killer is they must be able to poison the survivors. Elliot was trying to urge the gambler to eat a slice of pizza, though he looked as if he was already about to give up. Azure slowly approached the pair, slipping in next to Chance and grinning at the both of them. “Hey, how’d the killer find you already?”

Chance jumped out of his skin, nearly letting out a scream that would’ve alerted the killer of it weren’t for Elliot slapping a hand across the gambler’s mouth. The pizza delivery man shot him a warning glare that might’ve killed him straight way, then pulled a friendly smile and turned to look at Azure. “Hey Flower Boy! How’s it goin’?”

The botanist deadpanned. “Chance, it’s been less than a minute. What happened?”

The gambler grinned. “Oh, Lady Luck really wasn’t on my side today. Gun blew up on me when I tried to take that shot, killer landed a blow on my side and I’ve been feeling like shit ever since.”

Elliot rolled his eyes. “He’s been seeing doubles. He couldn’t even catch my pizza when I threw it right in front of him.” Chance glared at the other when he said that and shoved his cabinmate, annoyed. 

“I don’t know what the new killer does, ‘kay?“ The gambler defended himself by saying. “No one told me they would have a stinger and wings. That stinger hurt, by the way.” He shivered, like he was uncomfortable. “Plus, they could shoot these…blades? Plates? I don’t know, something like that.”

“Great, anything else we need to take note on?” Azure asked, then flinched when a loud, shrill cry rang out from across the map. The sound of a sentry going off followed suit, blasters firing rapid onslaughts of lasers at the killer. Guest’s yell followed, then another bird-like screech from someone. 

Another scream, and the timer on their watches goes up by thirty seconds. Someone has died.

3:17

3:44

A slightly longer pause, then

4:09

Three survivors already dead. Azure’s guess was Builderman, Guest since they were in that area, and whoever was with them, though that first scream sounded a lot like Noob’s. 

“I think we should move.” Elliot said anxiously, clutching his trusty pizza box in his hands. Chance nodded in approval, so Azure does the same and began following them. They began shuffling towards one of the mountains to the east, occasionally looking behind them to see if the killer was nearby. They stopped midway for the trio to quickly finish a generator, then kept walking on high alert until they got to the foot of the mountain. 

007n7 was there, using a medkit on himself while nervously eyeing his surroundings. As soon as he caught sight of the three walking towards him, he abandoned the used medkit and darted west towards the cluster of walls to the corner of the arena. Elliot raised an eyebrow at the hacker’s actions, though he didn’t pay him much mind as the they began to hike up the mountain. An unfinished generator lay by the tree and near the ledge, which Chance motioned to when he noticed it. He shot a glance at Elliot, to which the two then slowly approached the generator to fix it in hopes of ticking down the time. 

Azure peered over the edge, observing and keeping an eye out for any incoming dangers. He could see n7 ducking behind a wall in the far northwest corner, just as Taph set up another subspace tripmine near him to give him time to escape just in case the killer found him. Dusekkar had concealed himself somewhere by the massive glass building to the west, possibly headed to do a generator. To the south, Shedletsky was desperately ripping into one of his fried chicken while massive pieces of unusually pale blades (?) nearly twice the height of the admin embedded itself into the ground and walls to his right. 

A flash of white caught Azure’s eye, followed by a low, rumbling laugh. It wasn’t deep and menacing like 1x’s laugh, nor was it glitchy and all messed up like Noli’s. It certainly wasn’t c00lkidd’s voice either, in fact it was too maniacal for it to be of the child’s, too insane to be of a normal person. He watched Shedletsky’s eyes widen in panic as he looked around frantically, before suddenly picking up speed and sprinting as quick as he could northwards. 

The clock continues to tick down. Elliot and Chance had finished fixing the generators and had joined Azure in watching the commotion below. Taph and 007n7 had noticed the admin barrelling towards them and instantly ducked behind another wall just as one of Taph’s tripmines went off. 

That same avian screech rings out across the arena, and Azure finally gets a glimpse of who the killer is; he almost doesn’t believe what he’s seeing, but he knows damn well what is in front of his eyes is real. 

He thought he’d already forgotten.

Massive, white wings of bone and flesh, now tainted with the unmistakeable red of blood; a skeletal tail of the same substance with jagged spikes lining the spine and a massive knife-like stinger the same size as their wing blades. The same messy ink-black hair and the pale, almost ghostly skin that hasn’t changed at all from when they died, but now accompanied wild, unfocused eyes. A glowing white halo resembling the symbol of the Spawn floated above his head, ethereal like those of an angel.

Two Time’s short, crazed laughs rang out across the arena as they spread out their wings, blocking the way out for Shedletsky as the terrified ex admin was backed into a corner. Azure heard Elliot suck in a breath as the killer raised their slender tail, stinger poised to strike in the same fashion as when they stabbed him in the—

No. 

The past has to stay in the past. It’s not like he could change it anyways. 

Why can’t I just forget and move on?

He doesn’t look when they impale the former admin in the chest with the stinger, but he couldn’t block out the sound of his screams and his body getting thrown sideways into a wall. 

0:53

“Taph, run!” 007n7 yelled, and made a mad dash for the mountains the trio was on. Elliot groaned and prepared himself to run, while Chance quickly tried his best to see if he could fix his exploded gun. The demolisher, seeing his companion had already fled and is now left to face the killer, scrambled to race after the hacker but tripped halfway and fell to the ground with a thump. He crawled away as fast as he could, but Two Time pulled out their dagger and brought it down on him, stabbing several times to make sure he was dead.

1:21

Then they diverted their attention upwards, to the four survivors now clustered around the top of the mountain. 

A low, animal-like growl that sounded like a mixture between an avian trill and a dinosaur snarl escaped their mouth. “Y̷̢͋o̵͓̊ù̵̝ ̶̼̐n̶̖̈́ȩ̵͠ę̸̃d̵͈̄ ̵͚̈n̷̻̈́o̵̹̕t̶͈̕ ̶̭̀t̸͉̔o̴̰̽ ̷͓̑b̵̬͝ẻ̶͖ ̸̞̌a̴̪̾f̸͎̀r̴͕͛a̵̬̚i̴̠͑d̷̹̋,̶̼͐ ̶̭̅d̷̳̓e̶̖͛a̴̗̍r̴̩̍ ̸̛̫f̴̦̽r̴͕͐i̷̭͂e̷͓̅n̷̡̒d̵̮̀s̶͈͆.̴̹̉” they smiled, an insane twisted grin that looked anything but forced. Their eyes were unfocused, yet still trained on the four like a predator chasing its prey. “I̴̙̎ṫ̸͙ ̷̀͜î̴̼s̸̨͝ ̵͉̌a̸̬̅l̸̝͆l̸͇͆ ̵̇ͅọ̸̈́f̵͉̽ ̶̠̈́t̷͆ͅh̶͈̅e̶̩̅ ̷̗̂S̶͔̒p̸̨̏a̸͎͠w̷̱̃n̴̦̎’̴̳́s̶̪̒ ̷̻́ẃ̶̘i̷͇̿ļ̶͑l̸̬͆.̵͇̽” Their words were extremely distorted, but he could still make out a majority of their words.

His blood ran cold as soon as he heard that name. 

He thought he’d already left it all behind. This isn’t possible. 

He thought he’d already forgotten. 

He has to forget.

“Okay, this is new,” Elliot mumbled. “I don’t think any one of the killer’s ever tried to communicate with us. Also, what the fuck is “Spawn?””

“Talk ‘bout that later; dude’s gone again!” Chance hissed. True to his word, Two Time was nowhere to be seen, leaving the area in front of the mountain empty apart from Taph’s body lying in the clearing. Before any of the other survivors could respond accordingly the gambler jumped off the mountain and ran for the other side of the map. 007n7 glanced around nervously before jumping after him as well, and was promptly skewered by a bone blade. He dropped dead on the ground, making Chance momentarily look back in his attempt at escape. 

1:47

“Shit.” Elliot cursed. “Chance, get out of there!”

Two Time’s head twisted and cocked in the sentinel’s direction, head positioned unnaturally like their neck’s been broken. Two of their wing blades were missing from having used them to impale n7, and their tail glided across the ground without a noise, flicking playfully while their grin widened. “Y̷̱͐o̴͕̓ų̶́ ̴̗̄ñ̸͓ę̴̚e̴͔̚d̷̜̾ ̴̜͛n̵͇̍o̴̠͠t̵̞͋ ̴̱̈́t̶̛͓o̶͚̎ ̶̈́͜r̸̺̅u̴̙̿n̷͈̿.̶̝́” They giggled. “I̵̤̚t̷̼̒ ̵̾͜s̸͍͂h̶̜͛a̵̟̎l̴̘̈́l̷̰͑ ̷̙͛b̸̖̔e̶̗͐ ̸̞͠t̸̲͗h̶͙̏ê̸͜ ̶̜͋b̸̨͘l̸͙̐e̶͈͘ś̴̤s̵͍͌ȋ̵̙n̶̫͌g̵̙̾ ̷̳͒ṯ̵̿ḥ̸̄a̸̼͝t̸͖̒ ̶͇̌I̷̜̕ ̷̨̌b̸̼̀ë̷͈s̴͚̈́t̶͚͑ǒ̴̥w̷̹͋ ̴̀͜ǘ̶̻p̶̱͝ȍ̵̞n̵̬͐ ̴͇̽y̸̬͐o̵̮͆ǔ̸̗,̸̗̄ ̶͔̕f̷̜̾o̵̭̐r̸͚͌ ̸̠̊y̷̱͒ơ̵̝u̴̳͐ ̴̢̛t̵̹̀ó̵͇ ̸̩͋s̴͇̆e̶̹͒e̶̦̕ ̵͉̕t̶̹̚h̵̭̽ȩ̴͐ ̶͙͗b̸̦̚ḛ̸̈n̷̻̾ė̷̩v̶̘͊o̷̥͂l̷̡̂e̸̤̓n̵̖̕č̷̳ê̷͚ ̷̦̍ò̴͉f̴̹̽ ̷̙̕t̷͖̽ẖ̶̔e̸̗̍ ̴͂ͅS̶̠͒ṗ̵̥á̵̻w̴̰͂n̶̮͝.̴̼̚”

“Yeah well I don’t need anymore shit, weirdo!” Chance said, and readied his gun. It had mysteriously fixed itself, though Azure wasn’t sure if this had a chance of blowing up as well. “You got any luck instead?”

Two Time growled. “F̷̝̔o̴̰̓ȕ̵̫l̸͇̄ ̷̢̏l̷̡̕a̶̖̅ň̴̦g̷̼͆u̵̪͌ȁ̷͎g̴̟̽e̸̩̒ ̵̲̑ị̶͌s̷̯̅ ̷̱͆n̵̺͑ŏ̷͉ṫ̷̺ ̷̳͌t̸͉́ö̸̦́ ̷̼̆b̵̦̊e̴͕͌ ̶̖̿t̴̯̐o̸̪͌l̶̬͠e̷͔̽r̶̹͝â̸͜t̸͓̃e̵̹͛ḏ̷͂.̶͍̋” With surprising speed for something that looked so heavy, they arched their tail and struck, aiming for the gambler’s back. Fortunately he’d managed to somehow dodge the stinger and swerved left to try and throw off the killer. They growled through gritted teeth in frustration and swung with their dagger, though it missed as well.

“Don’t die, damnit!” Elliot yelled, then jumped down the mountain to join the gambler, still hollering. “We got a minute left on the clock!”

“Then help, asshole!” 

The sound of the gun firing is accompanied by a pained roar. 

Azure leaped off the side of the mountain to run after Elliot, just in case the support needed help covering their escape. Chance was laughing to himself, gun now smoking from the successful shot at the killer. “Go!” Azure snapped, making a shooing motion with his hands at the other two survivors. “Half a minute!” The trio scrambled to search for cover, just as Two Time regained their senses. They immediately charged after them, but a sharp turn to the right sent them crashing straight into a wall. They yelped, wings flaring and tail slamming against the ground with such force that made the ground shake.

“T̷̲̉h̶̟̊e̶̖̓ ̴͎́S̴̼͐p̴̨͑ǎ̵̢w̸̝͗n̴̻̅ ̶̥͊w̷͖͠i̴̟̎l̴͈̽l̸̟̏ ̸̤̈́n̷̬͝e̶̜̔v̸̠͌ȅ̶̼r̶̳͝ ̸̹̃a̷͍͑p̵̫̽p̶͎͝r̸̲͊o̵̱̅ṽ̶̘e̷̼͌ ̴́ͅo̵̩͂f̶̱͠—̷̢̎“ they began to roar, then cut themselves when they caught sight of the botanist ducking behind a rock. 

They froze, staring at him in a moment of disbelief. “Y̴̻̊o̷̧͛ů̵̜.̶͎́”

0:46

“D̶̡͠o̸̳̓ ̴̃͜y̴͇̆o̴͇͌u̴͕͋ ̷̞̋n̵̤̄o̵͓͒t̶͚̉ ̶̹̂s̸̢̈e̸̘̚ȩ̸͋?̷̝͠ ̸̫̈I̵̜̍t̴͉̽ ̸̳̍i̵͎̅s̸̫͒ ̶͙̓a̸̛̺l̵̡̈́l̵̛̠ ̸͍̂t̴̼͝ȓ̷̟ú̵̫è̵̖.̸̠̋ ̵̠̐T̶̖̊h̴̨͋i̸̛͜s̴̭͊ ̸̬͒ị̷͒ṣ̸͠ ̶͖̌ẗ̷̤́h̸̠̕e̶͙͌ ̷͇͠s̴̠̾e̶̯͋c̶̡̀o̶̡̔n̴̞̿d̷̡͘ ̶͔̓l̴̗̈i̸̹̔f̴̡͘ê̴̬ ̵̪͒w̶͈̔ȇ̶̜ ̸̀ͅh̸͛͜a̷̱͝v̴͉͆e̷̝͋ ̸̖̃b̷̲́e̴̻̅e̷͓͘n̶̘̐ ̴̥͛p̸͇͋r̴͙͠ō̶͔m̵̠͝i̵͎̽s̶̢͒è̶͉d̸̟̕ ̵̭̈́a̵̳̎ǹ̸͕d̶͉̓ ̵̖͑g̵̛͉r̷̼͑á̶͕n̴̛̯t̷̫͑e̴̙͝ḏ̷͒.̷̤̀” They said, tone unsettling. They sounded just like when they used to try and convert other cultists, yet now it lacked all sincerity and leaned more towards a mad person’s rambling. Azure shrieked as three bone blades shot right past him, embedding itself into rock and barely missing his side. “I̸̬͌ ̴̼́m̴̺͑ụ̴͝s̸̖̋t̶̮͠ ̵͎̈́ḧ̸ͅa̴͜͝v̸̢͆e̴̩͐ ̴̬̈́o̸͔̓v̸̥̕e̷̫͘r̸̫̀r̶̜̆e̸̖͛a̵̫͠ć̷̭t̵̗̊e̴̙͒d̴̦̕ ̴̣͑ẘ̷̼h̴͙͆e̷̯̾n̶͎̉ ̸̝̏y̶̹̓o̶̜̒u̴̘͊ ̴̖̾d̸̳͗e̸̳̕n̵̲̕ī̷̝e̷̽ͅd̷̮̈́ ̷̜͒I̷̮̓t̸͚͐s̶͙̈ ̵̯̐e̶͇̓x̵̗̌i̶̭͋ṡ̸̩t̵̠̂e̴̤̅n̶̼͠c̴͍͂e̵̙͛,̷̢͠ ̸̗̃b̸̬̓ǘ̷̦ť̸̩ ̶̛͔y̸̠̿o̴̝͊û̴̗ṛ̷͠ ̷̻͗b̷̘́ḻ̷̄a̶͎͒s̶͇͝p̸̜̾h̸̻̿ẻ̶̩m̴̧̔y̴̨͝ ̸̗͊ẖ̶̃ḁ̵͝ş̶́ ̴̛̙p̵̜̚r̵̡͛ŏ̷̰v̵̤͐ḙ̷̈ṋ̶͘ ̴̱́i̵̡̓ť̸̡s̷̥̓e̶̼̍l̴̾ͅf̴̲̓ ̸̲͆í̸͕n̷̖̈́c̶̛͖o̴̳̅r̵̜̽r̷̟̒e̶͚̾ċ̸̭ṭ̴͋.̸̗̚ ̷̺͑T̸̮̔h̴̠̾ë̵̟́ ̴̼͛Ş̶͌p̸̦͗a̴͕͋w̷͈̆n̷̤̓ ̵̘͘ḋ̷̝ǫ̶͛e̴̛͎s̸͍̄ ̷͒ͅŭ̴̫n̸̲̏d̷̜́e̸̹̕r̵͍͗s̶͚͆ţ̷͂á̷̮n̴̪͂d̶͉̔ ̷̯̈́ỹ̷ͅo̶̮͐u̵̔ͅ ̸͓̔m̴̞̒ü̵̹s̸̥͂ṱ̴̍ ̷̱̉ḥ̴̏à̶̜v̵̮̔ë̷̝ ̷͍͂b̶̜͘e̸̝͂ê̴̠n̷̳͌ ̸̺͌m̴͔̆i̷̦̔s̵̰̐ļ̵̑e̴̢͛d̷͍̏,̸̺͗ ̴̺̽a̷̤͝n̵̜̕ḓ̸̈ ̵̪̓i̸̝̓t̶̤̎ ̶̭͝a̸̯͋l̷̺̈́ẅ̸̼́a̶͈͆y̴͍̔š̵̡ ̷̼̀f̷̩̍ó̵̻r̴̞̽g̷̨̀i̸͓̔v̷̤͊e̸͇͐s̸̢̿”

“Shut up!” Azure snapped. “Just take a no, Two!”

Two Time’s head tilted sideways, at an angle that surely would’ve meant a broken neck. “T̴̻̿h̵̪̕e̸̡̎ ̵̜͌Ş̴̛p̴̙̆a̷͕̿w̶͈̐n̷͚̚ ̵̟͒i̶͕̿s̶͓͋ ̸͎̇ą̸͐ ̷̜͒g̵͍̎í̸͕v̶͙͗é̸͎ṙ̴̤,̶̠̋ ̵̑ͅA̴͔̽z̴̫̈́u̵͍͝ȑ̵̨e̸͍̒.̶̰́ ̸̃ͅI̵̘̊t̷̺̄ ̵͖̽h̶͎̎a̸̱̿s̴͔̑ ̷̺͒g̶̬̈́i̷̬͠v̴͔̕e̶͙̓n̴̬̊ ̵͉̒u̶̗̇s̴̰̍ ̵̠̈́a̸̯̎n̶̨̄o̵̜͘t̷͇͘ḧ̷͕́ę̷͗ȑ̶̩ ̸̟̋ḻ̶̀ē̴̮a̸͙̓s̷͙̕e̴̹͂ ̸̝̈́ǫ̷͊ň̴̺ ̶͈̚l̷͎̒î̶͖f̵͆͜e̷̙̿ ̴̤͝ȁ̵ͅn̷̘͘d̷̙͝ ̴̝̊w̴̩͠e̸̢̅ ̵̢͑a̷͇̾r̵͈̔e̷͎̓ ̸͕̓ẅ̶́͜ì̸̹t̵̮̐n̷̤̚e̴̢͒s̵̭͗s̴̩͛e̶̟̓s̴͈̆ ̴͉͋ţ̵̎o̷͎͘ ̷̻͑t̴̟̀h̶̯̓i̸͔̓s̶̝͊ ̸͔͋b̴͔͆ḽ̷̋e̸̜̓s̵̰̓s̵̹̈́į̶̃n̶̯̅ǵ̸̬.̶̹̋” They don’t strike just yet; they observe, head still tilted, dagger in hand. “T̷͖̎a̵̒͜k̶̥̈e̴̹͐ ̶̯̂b̶̮̏ä̶͜ć̵̲k̴͉͒ ̵̱͆ŷ̴̜o̵͙͝u̶̯͝ŕ̴̦ ̵̣̈b̷̲̋l̸͕͋ä̴̟́s̷̜̍p̸͚͂h̴͖̽ê̵̠m̶̠̽o̸̱͒ȕ̸̗s̶̙̏ ̴̲͐s̴̬̕t̷̝͝ǎ̸̞t̷͎̎e̶̻͊m̵̬̏e̷̦͊n̸̘̎t̵͕͆,̷͗͜ ̸̣́ḓ̴̕é̷͖à̶͇ȓ̵̜ ̵͖̉N̶̤̚ĭ̶̮g̸̦̽h̵̥͛ṱ̶̓s̴̬͌ḧ̴̲́ã̵̬d̶͇̉e̵̝̊,̴̪̄ ̷͓͐a̶͇̽ň̶̻d̷͔́ ̸̫̿y̶̹͂o̸̖̿ȗ̵̡ ̴̲̋ṣ̴͛h̷͎͌ạ̶͋l̷̮̑ĺ̴̥ ̵̥́b̷̩̒ḙ̸̐ ̶̯͂f̸̠̂o̴̲̍ṙ̴̩g̵̣͘ỉ̴͚ṿ̴͗ḛ̸̋n̸̰̾.̷̭̔”

“Was killing you once not enough?!” He yelled, backing up further. He’s aware both the pizza delivery man and the gambler were watching, but he doesn’t pay them much mind. “You can shut up about the Spawn! It’s not real anyways! And don’t call me that!” 

0:24

Their eye twitched. “I̴̡̾t̷͇̏ ̵͒͜ì̷͚s̷̟̏ ̴̡̈́r̷̳̆e̶̘͆ä̵̻́l̸̪͠!̸̄͜ ̵̦̊Ÿ̵̖́o̵͇̚ṵ̸͠r̵̡͛ ̶̰͘j̴̤̈ū̷̞d̴̜͐g̶͕͝e̴͎̒m̵̫̊ė̸͙n̶͛ͅt̶͎̉ ̴̻̈́ḣ̷̡a̵̹̎s̸̙͗ ̸͎̽b̶͙̓ĕ̵̮é̵̫ṉ̸̅ ̵̧̂c̵̝͑l̶̛̥ö̴͉́u̵͕͑ḋ̵͉ē̸͍d̶̗̀ ̶̣̍ā̶̻n̴̪̋d̴͚̔ ̵͍͝d̸̘̆i̸̹͆ṣ̶̐r̴̡̀u̷̘̎ṗ̴͜t̴̠̆ẻ̷͉d̷͍̾.̷̮͝” Their wings flared. “T̵̩̓h̵͖͗e̷̖̔ ̷̭̾Ș̷̐p̵̙̐a̴̰͝w̴͇̄n̴̛̖ ̷̢̉ḥ̷̌a̴̪̅s̶̫͋ ̷̮́s̷̠̓p̵̥̽o̵̞̓k̷͍̓e̶̝͋ņ̴͑ ̴̢̈́t̶͚͐o̶͇͐ ̴̈́͜m̴̿͜e̷͔̚.̶̪̎ ̵͖͛I̴͈͋t̴̡̂ ̶͖̃h̸͍̀a̸̱̾s̶̼͌ ̷́͜ȏ̷͖f̴̪̂f̵̞́ȩ̵̇r̸͍͝ȇ̴͚d̸̦͆ ̷̼̌y̷̹͊ô̶͜u̵̢͑ ̷͔͑a̵̲͊ ̷̪̿c̴͍̓h̵͈̃a̸̫̓n̶̯͗c̷͎̈́ë̷̗ ̷̧̔a̶̹̔t̶̲̒ ̸̮̏r̷͊ͅe̶̕͜m̵̖̑i̷͇͐ś̴̲s̷̳̕ḭ̸̏o̴̱̅ṅ̸̡,̵̮̀ ̶̪͌y̵͇̆ê̷̖t̸͍̋ ̵̠̽ỹ̴̝o̶͎̚u̵̹̓ ̶̰̊h̵̪͊a̶͉̍v̶͕͑e̶̩͒ ̶͈̋r̵͍͛ĕ̷͔f̶͕͆u̵̖̒s̷̟̓e̷̢͗ḋ̸̨ ̵̇ͅI̴̲̋t̷̼͗’̴̝̅s̷̪̀ ̷̖̐m̵͈̆e̶̫͂r̸̯̕c̸̦͂y̸̑͜.̶̛̣” The very same dagger that had ended him and sent him to this hell was clutched tightly in their hands. “I̷͍̍̊ ̵̡͚̕s̶̼̻̿͂ḯ̸̢n̷̪̥͠ć̷͎̭̀e̵̬̙̎r̷̼̖̃̃ė̵̢̥̆l̷̺̚y̸͓̬̎ ̴̖̉â̴̘̝͑ṗ̴͉͐o̶͔͆l̵̺̇ô̶͈͔g̷̠̎͋i̶̲̥͊s̷̭͆e̶̺͛̃ ̸͉̤͑͆f̵̫̋͆ö̴̼̠́̈́r̸͈̜̚̚ ̸̻̔̚m̵̲̦̃͘y̷̜̾̚ͅ ̸̬́a̷͚̜̎̚c̸̤̭̈͗t̵̳͔͝i̴̤̊͒o̸̗̫͑n̴̳͆s̴͎̔̂,̸̛̳̹́ ̷͇͒͠f̶͙͋͘o̸̠̜͝ŗ̷͊́ ̷͚̃I̸̢̢͌̄ ̶̪͕̍́h̷̬̽̍a̷̤͈̒̈́v̵͇͋ͅe̸͖̅̒ ̸̧̟̍̉l̷̞̹͋͘ê̷̞͉͠t̸̖̞̑̊ ̶̮̝̃ḿ̸̡̗̇ÿ̴̧́̃ ̴̡̕f̷͚̱̒̕u̶̫͊̅r̴̛͕y̵̲̽̕ ̶̖̥̉̂t̵͎̋̽ͅā̶̮̳̋k̸͇̼͝ë̵̮́ ̸̥͌c̴̩̠͛̃ō̷̜͂͜n̷̝̿̀t̸̛͚̹͊ṙ̴̠ò̶̧̧ḷ̸̈́͘ ̴͖͐͊ḯ̷̻̝n̴̮͉͗͝ ̴̮͂̑m̶̪̘͗̑y̸̫̯̅̈́ ̴͚͈̊͘h̶̩͒͗a̴͇͗͘z̷͚̦̉e̶̛͚͝ ̴̠̪͌o̷̜͑̌ṽ̸̲̦ê̷̠ṙ̶̫̭ ̸͎͈͋t̴͎̘̄̿h̵̦̳͌̾e̴̺̥͂ ̶̱͓̉͘p̵̜̀̏ö̴̫̳́i̷̡̮͘͝s̵̢͍͆͠o̵͙͑ņ̶̯͑.̷̣̜̌ ̷͚͑I̸͉̩͌̚ ̷̪̓s̷͇̑̉į̵̓m̷͔̊p̷̨̲̈́͑ļ̸̧̊́y̵̩͚͊ ̷̞̿w̴̠̣̋a̵͔͐n̴͎͆t̶̪̓́ ̷̹̲̊t̷̮̉̆ͅŏ̴͚̪̀ ̵̫͇̆̈b̴̨͕̓e̵̙̔͜ ̴̹̍w̶͓̒̎i̸̝̐̉t̷͇͝h̶̢̋ ̸̗̲̄́y̴͔̎o̶͍̊u̶̥͑ ̶̮̒o̵̹̓͗n̵̲̆̓c̸̬̿e̸̜͂ ̵̠̰͆m̸̔ͅó̶͓̥r̴̥̫̊ĕ̷̖̿,̴͎̬̀͘ ̶̭̼̓͊l̷̜̾͜͝í̶̞k̵͇̅̒ĕ̷̹ ̸̡͍͐w̵͍̽é̴͇̈́ ̴͓́̃h̶͕̕à̸̙v̶̦̻̈́͛ȩ̴͛̾ ̵͖̘̀̅p̷̞̋͗ṛ̶̐o̶͖̲͘m̸̼̥̈i̴̼̟͆ş̶̫̓e̷̖͐ď̸̻̕ ̶͓́̆b̸̹̯̋ḛ̴̛͇f̷̗̹̂́ö̷̰͍́ṛ̷̝͛e̸͔̩̅.̷͉̼̔̕”

Azure braced himself to hit them. He needs to stun him. He has to leave. He doesn’t want to keep listening anymore. “It’s your judgement that’s been clouded!” He doesn’t want to remember. “I don’t want anything else to do with the Spawn!”

Their skeletal tail flicked, then coiled. “T̶̓ͅȟ̵̜é̷̦n̴̨̽ ̵̂ͅf̵̪͌ơ̴͎r̶̬̒g̷̬͗i̷͉͋v̷̬́ẻ̷͉ ̶̩̊m̸̪͛e̸̊͜ ̸̝̿f̸̮̎o̸̲͂r̵͖̒ ̵͖́h̴̦̋ä̷͜v̴͔͂e̶̬̚ ̶̨͗Ȉ̷̱ ̷̬̓h̸͈̊a̷͉̿v̶̜̍e̶̢̚ ̷̮́d̷̛͔o̴̖̊ǹ̷̩ë̴̳́.̶̯͆” They lunged at him in the same way they did before, but before the dagger connected with skin he summoned the largest puffball he could physically summon and threw it directly into their face.

Its effects were instantaneous, just as he expected. Heck, it was more than effective. They reeled back, coughing violently as the millions of spores from the fungi exploded in a cloud of pale yellow hayfever pain. At the same time, Azure bolted right towards Elliot and Chance, nearly tripping over his own legs as he stumbled around a wall. He would’ve fallen over if it weren’t for the support grabbing his arm and dragging him into where they were hiding.

0:05

“Dude!” Chance hissed. “You know that guy?!”

“Not really “know,”” Azure grumbled through gritted teeth. “More like “personally and formerly acquainted with.””

0:04

Elliot did a double take. “I’m sorry, what.”

“Their name’s Two Time. They’re a little…messed up in the head.” He said. “I’m really sorry. I…should’ve told you earlier. I didn’t know.”

0:03

There’s a long pause. Two Time’s frustrated growling echoed in the distance.

0:02

0:01

 

0:00

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Forget, forget, forget.

Not anymore.

He can’t. 

No. No, he has to.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

“What the actual fuck was that killer?” Shedletsky groaned. He was sat on the couch, with Guest once again sitting on the arm and Builderman perched next to Shed. 007n7 was nowhere to be found, while Taph and Dusekkar gathered by the stairs, talking and signing with each other. “That was…scary.”

“The great Shedletsky, scared?” Builderman mocked. “You’ve gone soft.”

Elliot stared at the three gathered on the couch, arms crossed. “Right. How’d you three die?”

Guest sighed. “I missed a block.” He waved in his general direction. “Everything went downhill after that. Duse managed to hold up his spawn protection on Noob for a bit, but then he had to run after Builder died.” He grunted, rubbing his arm. “We thought he was a rushdown fighter, but apparently he could shoot his “feathers” (he makes air quotes at that) at us so…”

“I cannot believe how you three even managed to loose against a killer, new or not.” The pizza delivery man dragged his hand across his face. “And apparently Azure here knows them.”

The ex-cultist stays silent, staring down at the floorboard like it’s the most interesting thing ever.

“I-I don’t think we should jump to conclusions so quickly.” Noob murmured.

Chance rolled his eyes. “Buddy, he and the killer literally had a conversation right in front of us. Something about a “Spawn” and forgiveness. I really don’t know what was going on between them, but they sound like someone who’s batshit insane.” He shuddered. “They even laugh like an insane person.”

“They didn’t say much to us.” Guest said. “Just “Your sacrifice will not be in vain” and then stabbed me into oblivion with their knife wings.”

“They can go invisible.” Shed avoided the soldier’s gaze.

“A-at least he can’t see us from across the map.” Noob mumbled. Trying to stay positive. 

Shed crossed his arms. “That doesn’t make them any better, does it? They’re just like a mix between Seven’s kid and Jason. Fast, terrifying, possibly perpetually insane.”

“Does it matter? We can adapt, just like when we first faced off Noli.” Guest glared at the admin. “They’re a rushdown with a single ranged attack, a stinger that can poison you and give you hallucinations, a dagger, invisibility and higher than normal speed. They can’t detect us from a distance, and they mainly rely on sound. Clear?” He let his gaze sweep across the gathered survivors, then stopped at the botanist. “I suggest we let Azure here gather himself together first, then we’ll talk.”

He wordlessly looked up at the soldier. Then after a very long pause, nodded. 

“You can head off to your cabin if you want to. I’ll bring you food later if you don’t want to come out.” Guest said, tone soft. “I know it might be hard for you to see them here, so it makes sense you need a moment on your own.” He gently patted the botanist’s back as a form of comfort, then turned to Chance and Elliot. “You two won’t mind if you stay in the main cabin for a while, yes?”

Elliot perked up at his name, having previously engrossed himself in a deep argument with Shedletsky. “I suppose I can interrogate later,” he huffed. “But I still want answers.”

“No one is getting anything from Azure right now.” Guest hissed. “Chance, what about you?”

The gambler, who stood by the bookshelves to the wall flipping his coin as usual, shrugged in response to the soldier. “I can go crash yours. It’ll be fine.”

Taph instantly pauses his conversation with Dusekkar. No you won’t, he signed furiously. There’s enough people in our cabin already.

Chance laughed. “Aww, another two would be juuuuuust fine.”

Just sleep on the sofa or something. Taph signed back, wings flaring. Anything but our cabin. We don’t have space.

“Killjoy,” he snapped back, though there wasn’t much bite to it.

Taph stopped midway through signing, writing out a furious Excuse me?! before hurling his fingers into a whirlwind of insults. Builderman started laughing while Dusekkar slowly backed away from the angry demolisher. Somewhere inbetween space is not something we have to spare and how about you go crash at the admin cabin, Chance argues back with, “Hey, Shedletsky takes up so much space I doubt I’d be even able to get in the cabin. He’s like, three of us combined.”

Taph pauses, then nodded. Right. Forgot about that. Sleep outside then. At the same time, Shed who was onlooking the entire scene, shot to his feet and glared at the two. “Shut up! I don’t take up that much space! At least I sleep on my own bed!”

“At least we’re not horizontally challenged by any singular mention of obesity we come across!” Elliot chimes in.

Shed spluttered, lost for words. “I don’t—“ Whatever he was about to say was left unheard, because the avian had already loaded his fists for a fight. Chance and Taph took that as a challenge and they too assumed some sort of battle position facing the avian.

Only Guest notices as Azure quietly slips past the chaos and out of the cabin. 

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

He slams the door to the cabin shut, fumbling with the lock, then jams the nearest heavy object he could find (a chair) into the door to make sure no one could open it. He’d have to thank Guest later for standing up for him later, but right now he has more on his plate to with first.

He slumped onto the ground with his back to the door, hands on his face. 

Forget, forget, forget.

Why can’t he forget? 

He has to forget. He should forget. 

Why can’t he forget?

He doesn’t want to remember.

(Two Time hisses in anger as they drive their dagger deeper. Their tail sluggishly thrashed, the body slowly loosing its grip on reality.)

He doesn’t want to relive those memories again.

(A body slams hard against wooden walls, the sound of pots smashing and dirt spilling onto the floor evident.)

Why did they have to be here? Everything would be alright if they weren’t here.

(Brilliant violet petals slowly sink and disappear out of sight as the water boiled.)

He doesn’t know what to think. It’s all replaced by the repeating scenes from that night, and anything that isn’t is shrouded in this mist that seems to blur everything else.

(The coughing, the laboured breathing, that feeling knowing that you are the cause of all this suffering.)

He hears his breathing get quicker and more rapid, heartbeat pounding in his ears.

 

(…)

 

(Why are you afraid? You are the reason this all happened, the reason you even became trapped here in this hell.)

 

(You don’t have a reason to forget. Just embrace it, because there isn’t anything else you can do.)

 

(You said it yourself. You can’t change the past.)

 

He tries cutting through his panicked thoughts by taking in a deep breath. One. Something they had taught him a long time ago to deal with his outbursts. They said it could help calm him down, by counting his breaths and gradually slowing down.

 

Two. He breathes out.

 

(It had already happened, so what’s the point of avoiding it? You didn’t acknowledge it, and here we are now. Face it.)

 

One.

 

(Face the fact that you’re just going to be stuck in this death loop with them for eternity until you find a way out. Or them.)

 

Two.

 

The train of thought gradually stops, but he couldn’t shake the words out of his head. 

 

One.

 

(Face the truth.)

Two.

One.

Two.

His heartbeat slowly returned to normal. His breathing had steadied, and he could feel the fog in his head slowly clear.

One.

Two.

“You’ll be fine,” he murmured to himself. “You’ll be fine.”

(Acceptance is is the final stage of grief.)

He doesn’t feel fine, but this’ll have to do. Forgetting isn’t a luxury he has anymore, but he supposed dealing with it might as well be the only way. Facing your fears, isn’t it called? He never thought he’d have to do it here. He chuckles a little to himself, and looks up at the ceiling. Several pots of morning glory dangled from the wooden beams in hanging basins that he made out of clay, alongside ivy and figs that crawled over and took up a majority of the roof on his side of the cabin. A curtain of vines acted as his window blinds standing above his bed, while other flower pots scattered all across the cabin bloomed full of carnations and whatnot. 

Being with his flowers always made him feel better. It reminds him of home.

He leaned back, head thudding softly against the door. Everything will be alright—

He feels himself suddenly get teleported into another place, like the ground just disappeared under them.

Oh right. There’s still more rounds to go. 

He groaned inwardly but was grateful he’d dealt with his earlier problem. Oh well. Here we go again.

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

“You feeling better?” Elliot had asked as they reappeared back in the main cabin. Mostly everyone except for Builderman and Taph had lived through the round with John Doe, though Chance too would’ve died if Noob didn’t finish the generator just in time for the round to end.

Azure nodded. “Kinda…I suppose all I needed was some time.”

The other laughed, hearty and comforting. “Guess that’s what everyone needs. You ain’t the first to go through all that.” He eyed 007n7, then shifted his gaze to Shedletsky. 

Azure laughed along, awkward. He hasn’t exactly been near the rest of the survivors during the round, so he doesn’t know what they feel about him knowing Two Time. He hoped they wouldn’t give him the same reaction as they did to n7, though he still braced himself for the worst when the rest of the survivors approached him.

“Buddy, you can calm down, y’know?” Chance slaps his hand onto the botanist’s back. “You look like we’re about to eat you.”

Builder snorted at the reassurance. “Yer sound like you didn’t act the same when we figured you ’n Mafioso had somethin’ going on.”

Chance glared back. “That’s not helping.”

“Neither are you.”

“Fair enough,” the gambler sighed. He turned back to Azure. “So…you in the mood to tell us something about this Two Time?”

“Yeah. I feel fine enough about it now, I guess.” Azure could feel the eyes of everyone in the room burn into him. It feels frightening, but he ultimately choses to face it. “I…don’t think I’ve ever told you this, but I used to be in a cult with them. We were really close, and we used to stay together like metal to a magnet. This cult of theirs, they called it the Spawn cult, and they worship this Spawn deity. They believed in the ability to have a second life, to be able to respawn back into this world after death, though their ways of achieving this was…extreme.

“They lied a lot to the followers, and they were really strict. To me and…them as well. Maybe that’s why they were so devoted, because they had made actual blood sacrifices in the Spawn’s name. I started to doubt it when I got older, then one day I found out they had killed several someones and…I knew I had to stop them. That same night I poisoned them and hoped they’d…pass away, but they accused me of blasphemy and stabbed me through the chest. That’s probably why I have all those flowers on me, but I can’t really be sure.” He looked at Guest. “What they said to you, “Your sacrifice will not be in vain.” That was what they told me when I found out.”

“Is this what that whole Spawn thing means?” Chance asked.

Azure nodded in reply. “I’m pretty sure respawning doesn’t actually work that way. Though I’m not sure even admins can convince Two Time it doesn’t work that way.”

“Their path has been misguided; a new light must be provided.” Dusekkar noted. “Such feat could be achievable through means, though I am unsure—“

Taph nudged the admin with his elbow. I think he means it as a joke, he signed.

“Respawnin’ doesn’t work like that.” Builderman confirmed. “Though blood sacrifices is certainly…new.”

“They killed…several people?” Noob mumbled. “Should I be afraid? How many did they kill?”

“I never got that information out of them, but I know it’s a number larger than three.” Azure replied.

“How about those wings? Do they originally have those or is it the Sceptre?” Elliot asked.

The…what? The botanist stared at the pizza delivery man. “Sceptre? What’s that?”

Shedletsky spoke up for the first time. “You didn’t know? That’s the…thing keeping us here. It’s more or less a god.” The admin’s wings fluttered and shifted. “At least that’s what we’ve been calling it. No one here knows what exactly is the Sceptre, so we kind of just pieced together random ‘clues’ and called it a day.”

Elliot rolled his eyes. “You didn’t answer the question. Did they originally have those wings?”

“Y-yeah.” Azure rubbed his neck. “They were…a little smaller before we died, but still a hundred percent solid bone. The stinger wasn’t there though.”

“I still can’t get over the blood sacrifice thing, but why does their stinger get poison?” Builder asked.

“Genuinely? I don’t know. Maybe because I poisoned them?”

The admin paused, then made a so-so motion with his hands to no one in particular. “Yeah, I s’pose that logic checks out.”

“I think we’re forgetting we still have another round coming.” 007n7 interrupted from his usual perch on the second floor balcony that overlooked the ground floor. “Chance, you still owe me fifty. Sixty if this round turns out to be c00lkidd.” 

The last sentence makes Guest (who had been observing the group from the arm of the couch once again) chuckle a little. “Chance, what’d you bet on to make you loose sixty to Seven?” The gambler lets out an annoyed groan and turns to glare at the soldier. “We were betting on whenever the next round would be Noli or not. Apparently he really doesn’t want to be killer today.” He huffed.

“I think there should be a bet on when Chance will stop gambling or betting with us.” Noob joked, prompting an ice-cold glare from the other.

“I’m willing to take that bet.” Elliot said, raising his hand. Noob’s usual frown morphed a small mischievous grin, but before he could say anything in reply the gathered survivors felt themselves getting teleported then thrown out of the familiar cabin and into another place, the buzz of overlapping chatter in the cabin replaced by blank ambience. It was Pirate Bay, judging from the surroundings, and Azure had been tossed in right next to n7.

The hacker, upon surveying the area and regaining his bearings, turned to look at the botanist. “I suppose that saved you from those questions?”

Azure let out a little chuckle. “I guess.”

 

꥟ 🌺 .𖥔 ݁ ˖   ꥟    ‧₊˚ ⋅ 🗡️ ꥟

 

Several days and rounds later, Two Time finally reappeared. Azure had spawned in the map not far from where they were, so as soon as they noticed the botanist he knew he was most likely doomed. It doesn’t stop him from trying to run, though. He was ready to face them again, now without all that worry he once carried.

Three massive blades embedded themselves barely an inch to his right onto the ground, faster than the speed of which John Doe’s spikes rise from the ground, and barely any slower than 1x’s Entanglement. Azure swerved left, diving for cover behind a wall just as a fourth blade shot past him at breakneck speeds. Chance’s gun goes off in the distance, and Two Time’s hawk-like screech rings across the grounds of Yorick’s Resting Place, stunned in place.

The gambler runs past the botanist, shouting profanities and curses at them while Builder and Taph began setting up a whole fort complete with tripmines and sentries. Shedletsky was fixing a generator while keeping an eye on whenever the killer was near, and Elliot lingered to make sure everyone wasn’t injured. Azure isn’t too sure why a third of the survivors were hanging out in the same area of the graveyard, but Guest wasn’t near so it possibly wasn’t planned by the soldier. 

Azure peered at the killer from behind the wall, though they were nowhere to be seen. The four wing blades were still there in the ground, though he was aware they still had several more remaining on their skeletal frame of a wing. The strange thing about Two Time as a killer was that they didn’t seem to make a single sound at all when approaching which made Noob and several others extremely paranoid, but Azure was used to their silent movements and general creepiness so he had a general idea where they might have went.

His theory was proven right when their stinger came stabbing down onto his chest, impaling him in the stomach and inflicting him with poison, true to Builder’s word. Two Time reappeared by dropping down from a wall with a thud and hissing like a cat, dagger raised over his head, prepared to strike again. Azure rolled right, then dove under their wing before they could recover, making a run towards one of Taph’s tripwires lying around the area. 

They twisted around to look his way, and without a word launched themselves at him, barrelling without care towards the botanist and slammed their full body weight directly into him. He shrieked and heard something inside him crack, all feelings in his legs vanishing in that same moment. 

He looked up at their old friend, now transformed and changed into an unforgiving killer now blinded completely by the “Spawn.” Or is it the Sceptre? He doesn’t know. 

“T̸͕̘̈́ȟ̵̯e̴̬͇͛ ̶̺̎S̴̳̻̓p̷̜̀͌a̷̲̿w̸̫̞̋n̵̪͑ ̸̻͇̀̈h̸̥̗̾ḁ̶̪͘ś̸̲̱ ̸͇͑c̵̳͚͆̆á̸̰̳̇l̶̞̽l̶̖͆͘e̸̛̗d̸͎̠͂͠ ̸̛͚f̷̯͑̿o̶̢̫̕ṟ̵͑̓ ̷̰̒̂y̶̡̦͝o̶̡͐͂ů̶̞͓r̸̗̃̈ ̸͓͗̕d̶̢̽͝e̷͕͌̄p̸̳̮̍͐a̴͌͂͜ŗ̷̜̄t̵͈̼̅͊ü̵̗r̷̭̖͗e̸̖̔͜ ̵̳̭̇͋f̴̭̀͛ȓ̴̝̖̓ǒ̵̤̮m̴̛̹͈͒ ̷̗̀̂t̷̻͆ḧ̸̳́̋i̴̧͘s̶͇̋́ ̵̤̑w̸̖̲̚͝ọ̸̽͂͜r̴̼̆̆ĺ̵̘͑d̶̳̉̏.̶̮́͝” They snarled.

Azure grinned. “Then fuck off.”

There was a slight pause from the killer. A moment’s hesitation, and they brought down their dagger with all their strength.

“Y̶̤̆̓ǫ̵̬̈́̐u̶̪̅ ̵͍̥̑ḑ̷̜͝o̴̜̱͝ ̵̬̈́n̸̥͌͗o̴̙͐ṱ̷̾ ̴̦͎̕d̸͔͔̕̚ĕ̶̻͉s̴̯͈̀ë̷́ͅṛ̴̢̓͝v̴̺͠e̷̡͈̿ ̴͕̔f̸͍̈́o̴̘̍̒r̶̛̦g̸̘̿̚ì̷͙v̴̗̄e̷̦̹͒͘ṋ̶͆e̴̲͓̐͘s̷̗̈́s̷̙̻̕.̶̹̘̊͗”

 

3:27.

Notes:

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Leave a comment if you think I did fine! Also unrelated but which duo do you think I should write next? Official art here: https://www.tumblr.com/huskynotwolf/793189122537897984/knife-against-a-flower-memories-of-a-lover?source=share

 

To be continued ;)

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of Two Wrongs don't make a Right (Forsaken AU)