A Blessing and a Curse || A Hermitcraft/Watcher AU

Chapter Four

Xavon looked at the shelves, tightly packed with books of all different kinds. Some were about coding, others building, others redstone. There were no exact divisions into sections, but they were mostly grouped together about similar themes and topics. He wandered over to the top right, where the books were about illnesses. He didn't feel ill, and although everything that was happening could be his mind, his instincts told him otherwise. He moved on, deciding to come back to the section later if he found nothing else, and read the titles on the spines as he glided over the shelves, occasionally pulling them out to glance at their details. He skipped sections of music and then chess, then looked a little more through the sciences but found nothing.

He wasn't sure exactly what he was looking for, but after a few minutes, one caught his eye. Not because of the title, but because of a symbol. He pulled it out, and the same symbol was on the cover, larger. It was a rectangle, with two corners broken off at the top left and bottom right. He read the title: An Admin's Guide to WATCHERS. His eyes widened slightly; he'd been told to 'watch' by the whispers. He stared at the cover for a second - it was decorated with blacks and purples and bedrock (resembling) patterns - before opening it.

The page of contents read: Introduction, Appearance, Magics, Dangers, Methods, Protecting against them, Sightings. He raised an eyebrow curiously, before turning to the introduction.

Watchers, often regarded as evil "Masters of Manipulation", are a small but infinitely powerful species. They have been feared and hated for generations because of their ominous appearance, power, and mysterious demeanour. Some consider them to be "Notch's Only Mistake". They are rarely known to show themselves, but when they do, danger always follows. Admins from all servers fear the day a Watcher is present.

Xavon bit his lip, before skipping the rest of the introduction. He turned to the Appearance page.

They are a vaguely humanoid shape, surrounded by metres of shadows darker than the void itself which cut through the air around it, looking like a glitch. They wear pitch black cloaks that cover the majority of their form, with white masks (see below) to cover their eyes. They have two to six wings, covered in many purple eyes (hence 'Watcher'). No photographs of the beings exist.

Xavon glanced at the picture (which was a drawing) of the mask, seeing the same symbol as on the cover on the book in the top centre of the white mask. He was intrigued by it. He flicked through a few pages, glancing at the Magics chapter, and then the Dangers chapter. He was about to go back and continue reading, but heard someone outside. He panicked and hastily put the book back into its place, not wanting Xisuma to realise it was missing, before there was a knock at the door. He went to it, deciding whether to answer or not since it wasn't his base. Glancing at the clock, he saw that it had been fifteen minutes since he left the picnic. Whoever it was would know that Xisuma was still at the picnic, he was the only one apart from the visitor that wasn't there; he opened the door.

"Hi Xavon." Grian said. Out of all the faces he might've seen, he did not expect to see Grian and Pearl.

"Hi." He replied, trying to decipher the expressions on their faces but failing. They seemed friendly, but there must've been a reason for their visit and he couldn't see any clues.

"We have a question." Pearl said.

"Okay..." Xavon replied.

"And it might sound a bit strange, but... have you been experiencing anything weird lately?" She asked. Xavon went silent.

"Like... shadows seeming alive, um, hearing things, seeing more than you should; that kind of thing." Grian elaborated. Xavon internally widened his eyes, but tried not to show it.