Nightshades Second Stem

by Samfra_247

Summary:

What if Azure became a survivor instead of a killer? What challenges will he encounter in this eternal hell, and will he ever get out?

Notes:

Hi hi! Welcome to my first ever fanfic! I made this on a whim, but I have like 4 chapters planned out :p uhh I hope u enjoy I'm mediocre at writing

Chapter 1: Prologue (such a unique first chapter name ik)

The taste of iron was strong in their mouth as Azure looked up at the night sky. The smell of the nightshades and snuffed out candles wafted through the cold night air, making their eyes water. He felt the stick of blood on their hands as they laid on the outline of a sacrificial spawn, drawn on the grass with his own blood. He heard the murmurs of prayers mixed in with soft sobbing, so close yet so distant from them. And he saw the night sky, moon shining down as if promising another day ahead, but Azure knew there would be no tomorrow for him.

The last thing he saw was the blue night sky, then nothing at all.

Actually, nothing seemed to be all he could see for awhile now. There wasn’t anything to do in the void he’d been stuck in for seemingly forever after his untimely death. He tried counting how long they’d been in there, but the highest he could count to was one hundred, which was quite impressive for where he came from. The place where they‘d grown up seemed to value…other practices above education.

And so he counted to the same number again and again. There wasn’t much else to do anyways.

“97…98…99…100…1…2”

Azure mummered to himself for what felt like the hundredth of hundreds of times. He sighed, laying down on their back and looking up at the same scenery that there was for miles. He held up a hand to his stomach, tracing the scar left there. Oddly, the wound that caused their death had diminished into a long scarred line. Azure shook their head, not exactly wanting to think about the events that led them here.

But he couldn’t help but wonder what exactly where he was. Sure, this place was dark and boring, but that’s all he knew. Wasn’t Azure supposed to have a second life, or whatever nonsense the elders preached so often that he even heard it in their dreams? It seems that their ‘second life’ would be spent in the dark expanse, being forever forsaken to be all alone. Was this some sort of unique place you go to after life? Azure thought if someplace like this existed, there would be more people. Maybe….no. Azure couldn’t think about them, let alone forgive them.

The piercing pain of the dagger was still fresh in their memory. Of how the blade cut through their flesh and bone brutally. How the one person he loved most plunged it in was what hurt the most though. their expression at the time…Azure could hardly remember it. He wonders if Two Time was still do-…no. He won’t think about them. He has better things to do-or as better as things get in wherever he is.

Azure stood up sharply when he started feeling tears form in his eyes. It was no use sitting around and wallowing in their feelings forever. He could try walking around, but because of how the entire area looked the same, he wasn’t sure he would even be moving in a direction. He would never be able to tell without a landmark to pinpoint their progress. Azure recalled an old story from their community, about a boy who had said bad of the Spawn, and was forever condemned to walk an endless field until he went insane. The community preached that when the boy begged for forgiveness, the Spawn granted him mercy. Looking back, Azure thought the story was stupid, that the Spawn was stupid. But what good is a dead person's opinion?

But Azure decided to try and test to see if he wasn’t in an “endless field" kind of situation. The first thing he did was place their hat on the ground, after he of course dusted off the lingering specs of dirt. He walked backwards, and the hat seemed to get further. Good, at least now he wouldn’t go insane thinking he wasn’t making progress. He picked it back up and trekked on, trying to spot…anything really. Hopefully an exit. But where would he even go? Well, they’d think about that later.

…

Azure has walked for 76 or so one hundred counts and nothing changed. He groaned in frustration, digging their hands into their hair. He paced around, feeling agitated and fed up. Maybe their plan didn’t work, and he really was just stuck in an endless black void for eternity. He turned back, planning on just trying the other direction, and jolted in shock when he saw…something.

Azure wasn’t sure exactly what he was looking at. A slightly humanoid figure with an odd hat stood before them, its presence imposing. The red ones and zeros that vibrated through its body made them feel off put, along with the slitted, black eyes that stared down at him. They were calculating, in the cruelest way possible, as if examining them as some pawn or toy. It then spoke, though Azure wasn’t sure how, as it didn’t have a mouth.

“You shall make my game much more fun indeed”

The creature mused, its glitched, monotone voice echoing through the dark expanse of the void. Azure shuddered, chills going down his spine. Game, what game? Whatever the creature was talking about, he wanted no part of it. But as he started to slowly back away, the creature snapped its fingers, and Azure blacked out.

——————

The first thing Azure saw when awakening was a wooden ceiling, alongside the conversation of two men.

“Ya sure this kid don’t got injuries?”
“For that of which I'm sure, injuries he did not procure.”

One of the voices seemed to have a slight accent, and the others words seemed rhymed and elegant. Azure slowly opened their eyes, holding their hand up to their aching head. How did he get here again? Their mind felt foggy, like they’d just woken up from a long dream. He shifted into a sitting position, staring at the two blurry figures in front of them.

The two guys turned towards them. One seemed to have grey skin and hair, along with a bright orange hard hat. The other had a blue pumpkin for a head, that of which Azure didn’t know was possible. He groaned, the aches getting worse the more the bright lights illuminating the cabin invaded their eyes.

“…Who are you two?”

If their head didn’t hurt so much, they’d be freaking out. The man with the bright hat seemed to look at them with pity before speaking.

“Name’s Builderman. The fellow there with the pumpk’n hat is Dussekar”

“Pleasure to meet you, new survivor of woe. I hope you shall get used to this strange place’s flow”

The pumpkin man, Dussekar, held out a hand to shake, but Azure didn’t miss how he made note of the spawn button he had attached onto his cloak. He shook their head, trying to banish the banging that reigned rampant through their mind. Azure couldn’t remember how he got here, it had all become a blur, mostly just the pain from what was now just a scar on his stomach and the memory of a large black void remaining. He got up from the couch, looking at the surrounding area. There was a mounted head of a red creature with wide eyes and sharp teeth. Near it were two pictures hung on the wooden wall, one of a crying yellow skinned robloxian, and the other was of a white seal. There was also a large bookshelf, with more books Azure had ever seen. There also appeared to be a cat lounging on top of it, its dark eyes staring down at them as its tail flicked lazily. But the warm atmosphere did nothing to help Azures’ now rising panic. Now that the initial haze upon their mind was wearing off, he was now panicking more than ever, fiddling with their fingers and digging their nails into the skin.

“W-where am I….I don’t remember coming here-this isn’t an area in the community, and-”

Builderman held up a hand, ushering them to calm down. The man paused, as if trying to put his thoughts into something Azure would understand. He eventually just sighed, taking off his hat and running his hand through his hair.

“Welcome to hell kid.”

Chapter 2: Chapter 2: The Grand Tour

Summary:

Azure takes a tour of the cabin with Chance
….
Yes there’s a Two Time POV later on
…
And a small C00lkidd one but that’s never gonna happen again

Notes:

Here’s a bit of info you may wanna know for future reference in the story :p
(Minutes -> Hours in rounds. 1 death = 5 minutes. LMS = 1:30 minutes. Cooldowns for killers are longer.)
-NPCs also live in the cabin and do rounds, though mostly won’t be focused on in this story. Got this info from the wiki.
(Cabin 1: Breakfast Round = 7:00-11:00, Lunch Round = 12:00-4:00, Dinner Round = 5:00-9:00)

Lowkey might edit stuff in this chapter later cause even tho I triple proof read it there may still be mistakes lol

Azure blinked slowly, trying to comprehend that sentence. Hell? The only knowledge he had of what Hell could be were stories from his community, and the fairly nice cabin didn’t look too hellish to him. It looked like something he’d quite enjoy living in if his life had turned out a bit different. It even had a cat, which despite some historical perceptions, didn’t seem like something you’d see in Hell.

“…Hell? This place…is Hell?”

Azure asked, while not believing this place to be some kind of purgatory, was still nervous just at the implication of it. The man with the hard hat, Builderman, nodded in confirmation, his face hard and solemn.

“Yep, no doubt about it…it’s a bit hard to explain. Ah, Let’s see… ya ever watch a slasher movie?”

Azure tilted his head, a bit confused and embarrassed for not knowing what a ‘slasher movie’-or even just what a movie- was when the man was saying it as if he should know, or at least have a clue.

“Sorry to ask..w-what is a movie?”

He hesitantly asked, as Builderman looked at him, bewildered, though the pumpkin man seemed as if he’d expected that response. He leaned in and whispered something to Builderman, whose eyes subtly darted to Azure’s spawn pin and back up to his face, his expression unreadable.

“Hm..well, I’ll try my best to explain-with hopefully better analogy for ya-later. I think it’ll be best for ya to settle into this place first. I’ll let Chance give ya the tour, luckily only seven of us were sent into a round today.”

Azure then heard the sounds of a coin flipping, along with idle whistling coming closer, as a head popped in from the side of the doorframe, a grin illuminating the person's face.

“Hey Builder! What’d you-oh wow, a new guy came? I thought it would’ve stopped after Taph came a few-like what, months ago? Ha, I never bothered to count. Anyways, what’s your name, new guy? Wait, let me guess, Basil? No no-you look more like an Arpun! Am I right?”

The charming guys rattled on, their grin only widening. Their black glasses shone under the cabin's lights, and reflected Azure’s slightly baffled expression. The man-who if Azure recalled was named Chance-had grey skin like Builderman, but slightly darker, along with bleached curled hair tied into a small ponytail behind them. Their suit was unbuttoned, a tie with the number 777 hanging loosely around their neck. He also adorned a fedora, along with an interesting choice of earwear under them. Azure realized he was staring a bit when the guys snapped his fingers.

“Hellooooo? Still with us Arpun?”

Azure quickly responded, trying to make up for their awkward staring earlier.

“A-ah, yes, I am, sorry…and my name is Azure, since you were guessing..”

Chance snapped his fingers, a slight look of disappointment on his face due to his wrong, but “somewhat close” guess.

“Dang, I was close. Shoulda heard what I guessed for some of the others when they first arrived. Hey Dusekk, remember when I guessed your name was Seedly? And how when you corrected me I accidentally pronounced your name Dum-se-kkah? Ah, good times…”

Chance wrapped their hand around Dusekarr's shoulder, still grinning widely. Dusekkar did not look amused by this. Builderman then cleared his throat, and Chance turned towards him.

“Would ya mind taking Azure here on a tour of the cabin and its grounds? Me and Dusekarr are gon’…discuss some things in regards of havin’ a new member here.”

Chance gave Builderman a thumbs up, and dragged Azure into an area on the left side of the cabin as the two admins headed into the kitchen area. As they entered through the hall, Azure watched as Chance waved at the host, who stood behind a counter and greeted Chance back, as the two chatted for a while. Azure, not wanting to exactly make a bad first impression on his tour guide, tried to patiently wait as Chance rambled on to his friend, who was called Carl, according to the conversation Azure was totally not eavesdropping on.

Chance eventually ended the conversation, smiling sheepishly as he gestured for Azure to come along into what seemed to be a sort of dining area.

“Man, sorry for getting caught up in conversation, bit of a habit. My buddy Carl is cool to talk to though, smart dude, feel like he knows everything, ya know? But anyways, on with the tour!”

He then pointed around the area, giving the names and some fun facts of some of the people in the cabin, and Azure mentally noted their names in case he needed to speak with them later. He also noticed how Chance was quite the social butterfly, seeing as he seemed to be on good terms with everyone in the cabin, chatting with person after person. Though he was quite loud, seeing how everyone in the room was turned towards the duo, intrigued by the latest addition to the dimension. Then Chance gestured to the stage, grinning.

“And over here is the stage! Sometimes all the survivors hold meetings ’round this area, though it doesn't happen unless something big occurs. I mean, I guess since you came, that’s a pretty big occurrence. Also, may I see your wrist? Gotta check if you have a watch. It’s gonna be one of the things you’ll probably be asked, so wanna make sure ya know what your role is gonna be, your abilities, etc.!”

Azure looked a bit confused on why he’d have a watch, or why he’d even need one, or what anything else Chance was saying is, but when he held up his wrist and rolled back his sleeve, he saw a watch on their arm. He thought it was odd, he hadn’t felt any weight on their wrist nor the feel of cold metal. Like it wasn’t even there. Chance looked at the watch, grinning.

“Well, there ya go! After the tour I should be able to help you with learning your stuff. Just wanted to be sure you’d know how to answer some questions later on.”

He wrapped their arm around Azure, who was still disturbed by the fact that there was a watch he had no recollection of putting on now stuck to their wrist, alongside the fact of how overwhelmed he was on all the new information he’s been getting with no explanation. Chance noticed their discomfort and tried to shift the topic, unwrapping their hand from Azure's shoulder.

“Well, that’s pretty much the stage area, I can show you the forest grounds next! C'mon, let’s get going!”

Chance then went for the door, before seeing the sleeping cat in front of it, its fluffy, tabby colored fur rising and falling gently as it slept. Chance's face lit up, and he dropped onto his knees in front of the cat, coo-ing it as it slept. He turned towards Azure, whispering softly as to not wake the napping feline.

“This little guy's name is Speedy, call him that because he likes to steal all the food from the counters in a flash, like the true born rascal he is! I named him myself, of course.”

Azure noted how gentle Chance was with the cat as it slept, softly petting its fur. As for them, their nose was starting to feel runny, and their face itchy. He let out a loud sneeze, which woke up the cat, much to Chance's dismay. The man sulked as the cat bolted away to who knows where, glum he could no longer be with the animal. Chance turned towards him, still slightly sad, but mostly curious.

“Hey uh…are you allergic to cats? Your nose is running a bit.”

Azure quickly wiped his nose on his sleeve, but thought for a moment. He hadn’t really thought if he was or not. He hadn’t been around cats often in his community, the only instance of him actually being near one was when Two Time found an injured kitten in the woods and took it to the elders alongside Azure, asking to keep it. He remembered having to suppress a sneeze the whole time the elders lectured them on how having a cat was not going to be allowed under any circumstances, due to some “religious rules”. After that, they had both secretly nursed it back to health and set it back into the woods after a few months. Back then, Azure had just thought he was coming down with a cold or illness of some sort, but the explanation of being allergic certainly explained it better. Azure then shook of the bittersweet memory, shrugging as he answered Chance

“I guess, I’ve…never really been around cats much. You certainly seem to like them a lot more than I do. Did you have one?”

Chance’s expression slightly dimmed, but he returned to his previous demeanor in seconds.

“Nah, not a cat. Had a rabbit, his name was Spade…but anyways, we ought to keep going with the tour. At this rate, everyone else will be back from the round before we even finish, and we still have a lot more ground to cover!”

Chance then opened the door, propping it his foot so Azure could go through. Azure walked over the creaky tiles to the outside area, and took notice of a few things. Firstly, there were two more cabins, though he wasn’t sure if they were empty or for housing other people. Secondly, the cat must have climbed through an open window of sorts, because it was now staring at him on an old rocking chair that was set upon the cabin's patio. And lastly, the sky. It was night, but there were red and black flickers at times, as if the starry night sky was a fabric covering something far more sinister behind it. And the longer Azure looked, the longer he could start to sense something was watching him. Chance then snapped Azure out of it once he started to hear their ramblings once more.

“So there’s the lake, my buddy Guest fishes here sometimes between rounds, or when he doesn’t get teleported into a match, but I’d say that rarely ever happens. Oh yeah-Guest is another guy you’ll meet here, feel you two would get along quite nicely.”

Azure, hearing about the mention of rounds yet again, saw this as an opportunity to ask the big question that’s been on his mind ever since Builderman had failed to explain it to him.

“Sorry for interrupting-but what exactly are the rounds you and the other two people seem to be talking about? I think they tried to explain it…but I didn’t get it…”

Azure hesitantly asked, as if anxiously thinking about Chance's reaction. This place, despite not even yet knowing its true nature, still put Azure more on edge than he’d usually be. Chance slowly turned to him and laughed, as if finally coming to a realization.

“Ah, so that explains why you weren’t totally freaked out! Usually Builderman, or whoever is available in the lobby, explains it to the newbies. I thought he’d already done it! Well, guess that task falls onto me this time…”

Chance said, as Azure unconsciously leaned closer in anticipation, wanting the answers he’s been wondering ever since he arrived in the strange area. Chance sighed, and explained in the most understandable way he could muster.

“So to start off…you’re now what we call a survivor, because we all get transported into rounds-usually in groups of 8 or less-and we have to, well, survive a killer. Are you getting all this?”

Azure’s face was now frozen with shock. He wasn’t sure if this guy was just messing with him, but Chance’s face was void of its usual joking demeanor, now completely serious. Azure’s silence was a sign for Chance to continue.

“But I guess it’s not all bad, when we die we get revived, and we all get abilities to help us live for the few hours we’re stuck in whatever makeshift arena the entity that trapped us here made. For instance, I can shoot the killer-but it only stuns them. Not sure what you're gonna be able to do, flower boy, I’d take you for a support role. I mentioned this a bit earlier, right?”

Azure was barely listening, still stuck on the part where he’d likely be killed over and over. Would he have to relive what had gotten him here in the first place? The piercing pain of a cold dagger? The tearing of flesh and crushing of their bones? Just to be remade in order to do it all again? Azure was feeling nauseous just at the thought. Chance certainly took notice.

“Hey, uh, how about I just get you to your room. I’m sure you’ll be in a better mood to explore later! C’mon, I think a nap would do wonders for you.”

And so it was. Chance led Azure back inside, Speedy lazily opening their eyes from where it had started to nap again to see the two pass, before stretching and walking off to wherever they pleased. Meanwhile, Azure observed the area upstairs while the duo made their way to his room. The pictures upstairs were as odd as the ones below, though that was something Azure was too shocked by. He also took notice of a passing dart board, along with a guy watching a panda through an old TV. Chance whistled as he led the way, now flipping the coin Azure first heard before meeting them. And finally, they arrived at a long hallway, there being around 10 or more doors, some decorated, some bare.

“Your room should beee…Ah! Right in front of mine! Well, I’ll leave you to it, good luck with adjusting. And remember, you have a friend right across the hall!”

Chance said, waving goodbye as he went back downstairs, probably to resume whatever he was doing before having to give the tour. Azure awkwardly waved back, and sighed from exhaustion. Maybe the killer thing was some kind of over exaggeration? He wanted to believe that, but the look on Chance's face had said otherwise. Maybe it was just a dream…yeah, and when he woke up he’d be back home, gardening and hanging out with-

…

Maybe he really should take that nap. Azure examined the name tag on their door, it only simply saying their name. Briefly glancing at the signs next to his room, they had stickers, colors, or were simply rewritten in the handwriting of the resident. He guessed he’d have to decorate it over time. Azure opened the door and saw the rather bland room, it only contained a bed, a desk, and a chair, all of which being made of wood. Though it didn’t make much of a difference to them, it was similar to his old living quarters back in the community with that aspect. The only difference being how his old room had plants scattered about, all having been tended to with up the utmost care.

Azure landed on the bed, its tense mattress not doing much to cushion their fall. He sighed, rolling over so he faced the ceiling, which had some stains, along with a spider crawling along it. Reaching into their shirt, they pulled out a necklace, the charm on it being a light purple symbol of the Spawn. There was supposed to be a matching one, but…no use dwelling on it. Azure closed their eyes, slowly drifting off into a shallow sleep. As he slept, he didn’t think.

He didn’t think of his situation.

He didn’t think of his old life and what was to come.

And he didn’t think of the sign on the room adjacent to theirs, on which if you were to squint hard enough, the eerily familiar scribbles made a name.

—————————————————————————————————————

(Location: Glass Houses [night version])

Two Time was crouched behind the tree that managed to temporarily shield them from the sight of the red demon hunting them & their teammates. Two Time themself was not doing so well, his arm having been clawed and leg nearly severed, and the rest of their body battered and bruised. They grabbed the medkit they managed to snag, it being the second one that spawned, as the first was rightfully given to the healer. As they attempted to mend themselves, they heard the demon child laugh, and before Two Time could even glance at where he was, they were hit in the head with a brick.

One life down. One more to go.

As Two Time respawned, their grin didn’t falter. No, it only widened as they felt the Spawns grace flow through them. Their second life’s wings twitched as they glanced around, and spotted the father of the demon child doing generators, eyes squinted in concentration as he connected wire after wire, shortening the time. Two Time checked the watch in their wrist, seeing both good and bad news. Good news, there was a mere 5 minutes left! Bad news, Two Time and 007n7 were the only ones left. Two Time turned to fully face 007n7 once he heard a yelp, indicating the man had finally noticed them.

“O-oh, hey Two Time…did you…”

Two Time nodded, confirming that he did in fact just die.

“Ah, I see…I-…”

007n7 paused, stuck between strategizing to survive or the instinct to apologize for his son. But he was quickly forced to choose the latter as they spotted two clones of the killer heading inside of the building, the overly forced smile plastered on their faces and empty eyes searching for remaining survivors forcing them to quickly act. 007n7’s face quickly paled as he heard the approaching laughter and sound of claws digging into grass. They didn’t have much time.

007n7 turned to Two Time, their face firmer than usual, but still holding a hint of its usual hesitance.

“I-I have a plan…are you willing to go through with it?”

“The Spawn's guidance is upon you my friend. Lead us and we shall prevail victorious!”

“Good, t-thank you… but I’ll need you to go off the ledge for this…”

Two Time gave a thumbs up, ready to initiate the plan.

—————————————————————————————————————

C00lkidd happily skipped inside the tower, having seen the hiders from afar. He’d summoned his friends to help lure them out, itching to win the game of tag. After all, summoning his friends shouldn’t count as cheating, when he had to tag what was usually 8 people, and they always got too tired to be the tagger when it was their turn. C00lkid found it unfair, but he found many things here unfair.

As he ran up the staircase, he saw a man with a burger atop his head, along with bushy hair, a blue shirt, and pants. It was his dad! C00lkidd had been looking for him the entire game, but because of his sneaky tricks, it was so hard. C00lkidd dashed forward when the clone ran off the ledge, giddy with excitement at the prospect of beating his dad. And in his excitement he failed to notice the faint figure of his father, who was leaning over the ledge, carefully controlling the clone his son was chasing after.

As C00lkidd fell off the cliff, he chased after the clone, who weaved and dodged his attacks in circle after circle. So focused on the clone, he didn’t see the figure in the dark corner, whose eyes glimmered as they prepared to strike.

"I'M TELLING DAD!”

C00lkidd cried, the dagger piercing his back as the timer ticked down

3…

2…

1…

ROUND OVER: SURVIVORS WIN

—————————————————————————————————————

Two Time spawned back in the lobby with 007n7, and was greeted by Taph, Guest, and Chance. 007n7 quickly excused himself and went to the cabins outside, which was where he resided. He often left in a haste after rounds, especially ones where the red child was the killer. Guest and Chance then walked up to Two Time, patting them on the back.

“Bet cha did awesome Double O’ Clock! Too bad I didn’t get to see it since I sat this one out.”

“Good job this round, you did wonderful with your backstabs, at least the ones I saw when I was alive…”

Ah yes, Two Time recalled now. Guest had been the 4th last to die, having defended Elliot, who soon fell after him.

“With the Spawns blessing, I have indeed triumphed! I must now give my thanks, please excuse my haste to depart, friends.”

Two Time clasped their hands together, grin only widening as they thought of the upcoming worship session with their deity. They quickly walked off, heading upstairs to their room. The cat, who had gone inside earlier, watched as they went off to do their thing, eyes trailing after their retreating figure.

After a moment of silence downstairs, Chance spoke up.

“Oh yeah, forgot to mention, a new guy came after you guys got into a round.”

Taph and Guest slowly turned towards him.

“Are you joking?”

Guest asked, baffled that Chance could forget something as important as that. Taph signed something along the lines of “You’re even more forgetful than Noob”.

—————————————————————————————————————

Two Time skipped upstairs, humming one of the tunes they had heard Chance hum himself from when they occasionally hung out or were in rounds. As they were about to enter their room, they noticed a new sign on the room adjacent to theirs, but before they could attempt to read it, the door slowly opened, and the person behind it yawned. And as the door shut behind the newcomer, them and Two Time locked eyes.

“…T-two Time?”

Notes:

Woah wow cliffhanger wow woah
Maybe if I can figure out the photo thing for AO3 I’ll add some drawings…okay?

Uhh also I’m adding some new tags yay

Notes:

Two time will show up soon trust