We're in the home stretch now, baby! Let's goooo
I'm so happy I can finally start revealing stuff now-
Rat squeaking, human speaking
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"War? As in planning to attack them?" Seven asked. What was he saying, of course it means exactly that! "Do they even have their supplies ready?"
Nosebleed nodded her head. "Bread has been working on explosives ever since you left. From what I saw, one stray flame and the entire forest would probably explode," she explained.
Seven gave a small groan, running a hand in his rough brown hair. "I still can't believe he left that idiot in charge," he whispered, before taking a sigh, "I bet he didn't even add half of the ingredients I packed in those things, which probably is going to make them more dangerous."
Nosebleed shook her head, stopping him. "We'll get onto that in just a second, but first."
She looked over to Rain, turning her attention to the Oracle. "Mono isn't happy about you either, but he said he was willing to forgive you if you come back now with Seven's head."
The statement made Seven feel uneasy suddenly. So it's come that, huh, bag boy? Try and manipulate again?
"Well, he can suck it up. I'm not going back," Rain said with a small growl under her breath. Seven looked over to her, giving a small sigh of relief. He should have more trust in her, but the effects of manipulation and emotional abuse couldn't be ignored.
He knew victims of abuse normally would wind their way back to their abuser, who would normally guilt trip them into coming back to them. He had the faint memory of his mother and father being in the same situation, along with the fuzzy memories of being at a different house for a short length of time, possibly their mother trying to hide from him.
Now, here his own sister had to avoid the manipulation from someone they once saw as their best friend and former Commander.
"Seven? Hello? Earth to, Sev." Rain waved her hand in his face, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked at her for a heartbeat, worry and guilt coiling around him. If he had fought harder, or tried to knock Mono out, maybe none of this would have happened... Rain won't be in such a horrible state and the rebellion would still be a safe place for future kids to hide in.
But, now what's the time to wallow in shame. They may still have a chance to fix it. "What did you say?" He asked.
Rain turned her head to Nosebleed, nodding to her in acknowledgement. "We may have an idea as to how to maybe fix all of this."
Nosebleed took the lead with whatever they had discussed. "Rain explained to me about the corruption at the feast and about the journals. She also told me her theory of Mono being like a lighting rod with the transmission from the signal tower,"
"Every time a TV is on, he's immediately transfixed on it and pulled to tune it. Not to mention he can manipulate it to where he can bend the transmission to his own will."
"Okay, and?" Seven scoffed lightly. "That's already known info on him. What's your point on it?"
Rain gave a small smile. "What if we overload him?"
Seven turned to his sister, crossing his arms. "How exactly?" He asked with in a short snap. Who knew how long they had until some other kids found them, they couldn't just talk over stuff all night.
"With the TVs! If we can find a huge stack of them and get him to follow us there, we can overload him with the transmission," Rain explained.
"So basically fry his brain? Not a bad idea, but what gave you the idea he'll follow us after everything and not kill us the second he sees us? Better yet, where are we going to a whole stack of TVs?" The boy in blue challenged. Rain pointed over to Squeaks, Seven following to where she pointed, putting two and two together.
"Rain, you can't be serious-"
"Seven, he'll kill you and probably capture me if he saw us. He knows Squeaks will lead him to you since you two are buddies. He'll follow her just to get to you," Rain answered back.
"No, she's not doing it. Besides, how will she even know what to do? You said you didn't know Rat,"
"I can try! I could try a blend between raccoon and rabbit and see if that works,"
"You're absolutely insane, you know that?" Seven growled, before shaking his head and took a breath. "Fine, but if she gets hurt, I get to kill him without you holding me back."
"Who said I would stop you?" Rain said with a small snicker. "But, in all honesty, don't kill him please. Now, let's see if this works."
Seven watched as Rain crouched down to get to Squeaks' height, beginning to make noises Seven could only describe as an owl being hit by a train underwater and drowning in said water around it.
Needless to say, he didn't blame Squeaks when she stared at his sister like she had grown a second head. She shook her head, tilting it. "Squeak squea?"
"Rahh rararah, click, maaah,"
"Squeak squeak sque."
Rain got up, smiling with a look of triumph. "She said yes in raccoon and something about turtles in rabbit," she chimed. Seven was caught off guard, eyes widening.
"There's no way in hell she understood you," he sputtered out, looking over to Nosebleed to see if she had his back. Instead, he saw the other smiling, ignoring the very strange event that had just occurred.
"Now, your second question. We can move a bunch of TVs, they won't be too hard with all of us pushing on them, but we better try and start now. They'll attack tomorrow night, you two need to hide before anyone else finds you," Nosebleed stated, looking over to the bushes she had come out of.
Seven shook his head. "Wait, the explosives. What about them? Where are they?"
"Oh, right. They're putting them in the back of that truck the rebellion stole from the Hunter a few days ago. Before I left, they said something about a bridge to get it across instead of driving it through the water and possibly ruin them," Nosebleed answered. Seven wasn't sure if it was the inner fire lover in him or the fact the plan was actually pretty smart, but it didn't sound safe one bit.
"The Molotovs will break if they aren't secured probably. Not to mention I used a grease as the basing, so there's a good chance that once they try attacking the city, the rain isn't going to out them out for a while and probably hurt a lot of innocent lives in the process. The water from the overflowed river won't hurt them, but it gives us a chance to cut them off if needed," Seven stated, his voice blunt as he shared his thoughts.
"We can talk about that next time. You two need to get going," Nosebleed cut him off, though did give him a small nod as to back up her opinion on his statement.
The two siblings nodded back to her, Rain reaching and giving Nosebleed one last hug. "Be careful out there. I imagine he's already appointed you as Oracle, it's against the founder's rules to not name another Oracle by midnight," she mumbled to her.
Nosebleed nodded her head. "I will, if he tries anything I'll take care of it. You two stay safe, we'll meet up at the beach tomorrow at dawn and get ready for the attack."
With that, she left back into the bushes, the sound of soft chattering from her and whoever she was with (Five if Seven remembered right).
Rain turned to her brother. "We can camp out near the beach, I know where a small hidden cave is down by it," she said in a hushed voice.
Well, so much for trying to get some form of rest. Despite it, he took her hand, letting her lead the way, Squeaks following behind them as they started to walk through the forest.
It was silent, something the boy in blue was thankful for. It was a short trip as well, Rain taking a few shortcuts she found from her past ventures down to the shoreline.
Small glittering shells and darker wave-lapped sand dressed the beach in front of them. It was small, hardly being the size to really be called one. The ground from the wilderness cut off, becoming a small ledge for them to drop down from.
Above them, the moon and stars were now blocked by the clouds, the only real light coming from a TV that was across the other side of the beach, resting on a stump.
The static it played started to make Seven's ears ring, ready to get away from the annoying constant buzzing. Rain lead them to the other side, away from the TV, pushing a few frond leaves and small branches out of the way, revealing a small entrance way.
Rain took the lead, barely able to squeeze passed the entrance way despite her short stature and size. "It'll open up once you get in!"
Squeaks seemed more interested in looking around rather than actually going in. Probably her curiosity or something getting the better of her. Seven dropped down, barely fitting in passed his shoulders, tugging and pulling under he was finally through.
Just like Rain said, it was a long more spacious on the inside, though not enough where he could stand up fully without knocking his head open. The rock underfoot was cool to the touch and bits of moss seemed to decorate the floor.
It didn't look like any sort of den he'd seen, so brushed the idea of a predator animal coming back for a good night's sleep off as a possibility.
"Squeaks coming?" Rain asked. Seven shook his head, sitting down on the rocky floor.
"Think she's gonna explore for a little bit, she'll be back later," he answered. His sister sat next to him.
"Yeah, maybe she will. We should try and get some sleep, good night, Sev,"
"Night, Rai."
Rain laid down on the floor on her side, arms folded under her like a pillow. In no time, she was back to sleep, leaving the former head pyro tech alone by himself.
He wasn't a bit fan of the loneliness, despite being used to it after living in the rebellion for most of his life. He laid down, hands on his jacket sleeves as he rested his head on a rock, using it as a pillow.
He took a small breath, closing his eyes and trying to drift off in what he hoped to be a good, restful sleep...
***
He reopened his eyes, swearing under his breath as he looked around at the black void surrounding him. Couldn't that stupid, arrogant, gluttonous shadow not bother him for one freaking-
"Cutie, you look like you need someone to talk to," a voice spoke. Seven looked around, before finally seeing the other.
Arcane's mask was still the same as it was every time, pristine white with a wide Cheshire grin, while small slits showed his glowing white eyes.
"Oh stuff a rock in it, I don't need to talk to you," Seven snapped, a small growl under his voice.
"You know, you've been worrying me lately... ever since I took over last time and attacked that kid in the green hood, you've been really off," Arcane pushed on.
"Stop it, you're just a stupid voice in my head. You're not real, so leave me alone!"
Arcane blinked as to him, tilting his head. "Voice in your head? Not real? What makes you think all that?"
"Because I'm just like anyone thinks I am. I'm crazy, I can't handle my damn emotions, I can't be trusted, or anything!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy, Cutie!"
"Quit calling me Cutie!"
"Yeesh, okay, just relax. Sev, you're a good guy. Yeah a few screw loose with a talk shadow demon in your head, but still a good guy. What's making you say this all of a sudden?"
"You're not real, quit talking to me and trying to make me feel better,"
"Sev, if I wasn't real, I won't be able to touch you or even be seen by you. You don't see voices, unless you're special or something," Arcane mumbled the last part quickly.
Seven looked up at him. "So... you are real?"
"Duh. I overheard what the tall lady told ya. Honestly, I think she was just trying to mess you up more. Plus, if I was just a voice, you got a pretty empty head because I'm the only one here that isn't your subconscious," Arcane teased.
"I hate living..."
"I know you do, Cutie, but just hang in there just a bit more. This'll be over soon and better days will come,"
"How do you know that?"
"I don't, but I want you to have a good ending one day,"
"Hey, Arc?"
"Yeah?"
"... Thanks for that,"
The shadow let out a small giggle. "Seeeee? You can't be mad at me for too long! I knew you liked me~"
"Arcane, stop before I break your mask directly in your face."
Seven's gaze softened a moment later. He had to ask, he needed to know in this rare moment where they didn't chare hostility to one another. He needed to know...
"How long?"
Arcane lost his cheerful look, his sharp teeth no longer showing under his mask. His voice was serious in tone, low as he spoke.
"A month, maybe a month in a half,"
"After that?"
"The curse will get worse to the point you can no longer control it. You will die, and your body will be mine. It's nothing personal, it's not even my choice really... I'm surprised you gone this long,"
"I remember you telling me about this when you first starting appearing to me. A curse from being in contact with the transmission, when Mono threw me in the TV. We agreed to never talk about it until I started signs of going down hill,"
"And after almost three years, you're finally showing signs,"
"So what's the black goo?"
"Your body's way of trying to get rid of me. It's just shadows. It'll get worse the closer you get to the transmission,"
"That's why I start coughing it up once on the main land?"
"Yep, we're closer to the signal, so while I'm getting stronger, you're getting weaker with each day. Soon I'll be taking over."
Seven went quiet soon after. He knew he was dying, Arcane had explained it before. When Mono had thrown him, he had came in contact with the signal and Seven became corrupted himself. Only, instead of being taken over, the corruption came in the form of the shadow that was housed in his head.
Maybe that's why he hated that word. Corruption. He wasn't corrupted like him, he was just... unlucky.
He had been very slowly dying the moment he was in The Maw, not from the dark magic that surrounded it or the danger residing in it. He never liked to think of it, but now he had to address it head on. He avoided it in an attempt to forget it, to try and pretend it never happened.
For a moment, he finally did while he was escaping with Squeaks, but now... now he couldn't.
"Are you going to tell them?" Arcane asked. Seven looked up, shaking his head.
"No. We have bigger issues to deal with. If I can just get them to safety, I can die happy. You won't hurt them?"
"Not in my wildest of dreams, and believe me, they get wild."
"Good."
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Finished - Apr. 14th, 2021
This took way to many rewrites. I know it's mostly dialogue, but honestly, I needed to try and get a lot out of stuff out and try to tie some strings together.
So yeah, the truck wasn't just for random introduction purposes
Also Arcane is worried hunger gay demon
Anyways, hope you all enjoyed!
Take care!
* Edited June 17th, 2021 *
Okay, I was originally going to explain in Tower about Seven and Arcane who what exactly Arcane was, but I remembered this scene and thought it would be a little better since Tower isn't in Seven's perspective.
So yeah, big bombshell drop. I had the idea while writing Raincoat, but I figured it wouldn't fit right as it would feel out of place. The closer we get to the climax of the over arcing story, I felt like now might be good to add it.
But yeah.
Hope you all enjoyed!
Take care!