WC: 2971
Things are changing again--in ways that no one could have thought possible.
-
Things didn't go back to normal immediately.
It took a couple of months before people were brave enough to venture out of the Keep, even with all the Ravagers, the main source of danger, gone. They were so used to their safe haven in the Keep that it was hard to imagine going outside of its gates now, even if that's what life used to be like years ago.
With help from the Wanderers, though, people gradually started to get more confident and explore again. They started with the Labyrinth since it was now considered one of the safest sectors along with the Keep and Ruins. After that, they expanded to the Ruins and even the Forest over time.
Because of that, the skeletons, spiders, and zombies that had taken over the Forest started to back away, intimidated by the sheer amount of people suddenly flooding into what used to be their territory. To Etho's mild surprise, people liked how the new Forest looked and wanted to keep it that way.
Speaking of the Forest, the Wanderers' new project was to clear out all the remaining monsters inside. It was odd, challenging work, as they still didn't have any weapons to use. They had to lead all the mobs to the Labyrinth's void hole or the Crossroads's lava where they could fall in.
It wasn't nearly as hard as killing the Ravagers, though.
The Wanderers also helped repair damaged parts of the Keep, which was also no easy task--the Ravager had done a number on the place, striking a little over half the sectors in the whole kingdom.
Gathering the materials was slow, grindy work, as most of the leftover rubble was too damaged to be reused. Repairs were still going on a few months later, after all the action had ended. The castle courtyard has been restored to what it used to look like, but many of the sectors were still very damaged.
Etho couldn't help but feel a bit irritated when he realized that most of the sectors untouched were poor ones, including the old alley he used to hang out in.
One day, he found himself standing at the entrance of that alleyway. It used to feel claustrophobic and dark, but since the houses around it had collapsed, it now let the high noon light shine in.
The barrels, chests, and smaller objects that occupied the area were untouched, though--most of the damage here was done to the houses on either side. Etho could see a large crater where the Ravager had crashed straight through a nearby stone brick wall like it was nothing.
"Thought I might find you here."
Etho turned around at the sound of the new voice and grinned when he saw False herself leaning against one of the only still-standing parts of the alley. She'd taken her armor off, revealing the simple purple-and-white striped sweater she donned underneath, and she wore a large grin as she looked at her old friend.
"Hey, False," Etho said, returning the grin. "Been a while, huh?"
False walked up to him, playfully punching in the shoulder before hugging him tightly. Etho could hear an audible sigh of relief as she let go of him.
"Jesus christ--when I didn't find you in this alley later that day, I knew immediately you went back in. I was so tempted to go into the Forest myself and find you."
She grabbed Etho by the shoulders and shook him a little. "I can't believe you went in to take that stupid dare a second time, you idiot."
"I'm sorry," Etho muttered sheepishly. "I couldn't help myself."
False took a seat on one of the nearby barrels, gesturing for him to sit down as well. "Honestly? Now, I'm just glad you were okay. I was so worried, you know."
"I was okay. Impulse found me there, by the old lake...after I nearly got caught by a Ravager that was nearby."
"I'm not even surprised anymore," False laughed a bit at that, then grew serious.
"Did you know that I went to Tango after I couldn't find you? God, you should have seen him. He was worried out of his mind about you, even though you two hadn't talked in years. I guess, after Impulse went missing a few years back, he was worried about losing you, too."
A small smile spread on her face. "With how reckless you are sometimes, he has a point."
"I'm sorry I made you guys worry," Etho said genuinely. "But, hey, if I'd never tried that dare again, maybe we wouldn't be here now."
"Yeah, maybe we wouldn't. You know how I found out you and Impulse were alive and okay?" False shook her head in disbelief, laughing to herself.
"I was helping Grian move people out of one of the sectors. We used to be buddies in the royal guard before he went missing. I still hadn't gotten over the fact of him being okay when I saw you two, with Tango, with a Ravager roaring bloody murder chasing after you. I honestly thought I was hallucinating the whole thing."
Etho shared a laugh with her before asking his next question. "Did everyone get out safely while we were doing that?"
"Luckily, yes. The worst thing we had to deal with was injuries due to buildings collapsing. No one got too close to the Ravager. No one died. Not like the first time this happened."
"We don't want things repeating themselves," Etho muttered, almost bitterly.
False glanced over at him momentarily, noticing the change in his tone. "Hey, is everything okay? We haven't gotten to talk lately with everything that's happened."
Etho waved his hands around vaguely, unsure how to explain things.
"I guess I'm still getting over all of it. Tango and Impulse have been trying to work together again, which--don't get me wrong--is great, but I can still see the tension hasn't quite eased between them. I'm kind of worried about them."
False nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I've seen them around whenever I'm inside the castle. You can hear the occasional argument coming from the throne room."
When she noticed Etho's expression, though, she changed tact and hurriedly tried to reassure him. "I think they're getting better, honest. Things like this don't immediately heal."
"I know, I know. Just--it's been going on for, what, three and a half years now? And I feel like it's just gotten worse, what with all the disappearances and the Ravagers and the constant fighting..."
False reached over to Etho and gave him a little side hug. "Hey, things will be alright. We'll get through it."
She smiled as something occurred to her. "And, if you need a little more confirmation..."
She reached into a nearby barrel and pulled out three emerald coins--the ones she'd given Etho three or four months ago now, on the same day he'd gone back into the Forest and was found by Impulse.
"These haven't changed with everything that's happened."
She pressed the coins into Etho's hands. "I don't know how much coins are of use to you anymore, but you should keep these as a reminder that not everything changes."
Etho slipped the coins into his pocket, smiling gratefully. "Yeah. I will. Thanks, False. I missed talking to you."
She gave him a casual salute before getting up exiting the alley. "I'll always be here if you need me. Now, don't go running into danger any time soon."
»»————- ★ ————-««
Later on that day, when the sun was starting its slow descent below the horizon, Etho was walking past one of the sectors that was being repaired. X and Scar, two of the Wanderers who had contributed most to helping fix wrecked areas, waved to him cheerfully.
"We're almost done with this area," Scar said, his staff glowing with a pale white light as the wooden plank next to him started levitating. "I kind of missed building. Did you know I helped build some of the sectors around here? Though what I really worked on was landscaping the castle gardens and courtyard. The gardeners love my green crystal. It grows all the plants instantly."
"Scar has an eye for building, too," X said. "He's improved a lot of the buildings around here, by adding extra rooms and making the exterior a bit more detailed."
"Which means more resources," Scar put in. "X has been really helpful in that department."
"I'm glad you two have been renovating the Keep," Etho said, smiling. "You make a great team. The houses around here are looking great."
"Thanks!" Scar swung his staff around cheerfully, placing the plank in its place with a flourish. "Did you need anything or were you just stopping by?"
"Actually, I was wondering if you knew where the rest of the Wanderers were," Etho confided. "I haven't gotten to see most of them in a while, since we've been splitting up and working on different things."
X hummed thoughtfully. "I know Grian has been helping kill the monsters in the Forest with some of the Keep's guards. His wings have fully grown back, so he can fly around for long distances again."
"Zed has been in the Ruins most of the time," Scar chimed in. "He's trying to find out more about those magicians that helped you kill the Ravager in there."
"Hey, speaking of Wanderers, how are Impulse and Tango?" X asked. "I haven't gotten to see them, but I know you visit them every once in a while."
"I actually haven't gotten to see them in a few weeks," Etho said. "They've been busy trying to fix some of the other problems--the mass power outage, mostly. I'm going to meet up with them in the Forest in a few minutes, though, so I'll let you know what's going on there."
"Thanks, Etho. See you around?"
"Yeah, definitely."
Etho was about to leave when his eyes shifted over to the stack of wooden planks nearby. "Hey, actually...could I have one of those?"
Scar pointed his staff at one of the planks, floating it over to Etho. "Can I ask why?"
"For a swing." He winked at the pair, then headed to the Forest before either of them could ask questions.
»»————- ★ ————-««
Etho made his way around the castle and headed to the graveyard behind it, squeezing through the old rusting gate and entering the Forest again. He was the first to arrive out of the group, and he headed to a familiar tree amongst all the taller ones, waiting for Tango and Impulse to show up.
As he waited, he set down the plank he'd gotten from Scar and Xisuma and picked up the end of the rope that used to hang the old swing that had been assembled here. It was still tied to the sturdy branch the swing was on, but it was old and fraying now.
What was that now--three years ago? Maybe a little over four.
The plank already had holes on either side where nails would normally go. Etho gently looped the old rope around one of the holes, then searched around for the other rope. It had broken in two over time, so he had to tie the ends together to make it even with the rope on the other side.
After tying the rope in the hole, he stood back and examined the newly restored swing. It looked out of place in the new Forest, and it wasn't even the old swing they had, but it brought a little comfort to Etho seeing a rendition of it.
"You rebuilt it, huh?"
Etho turned around to see Impulse and Tango behind him, having just shown up.
"Uh, yeah. I thought, since we were meeting at our old hangout spot, I might as well remake the swing, too."
Tango took a seat on the swing, kicking his legs back and forth so the swing swung gently. "The ropes are still holding my weight. I'm surprised."
Impulse grinned and stepped behind him, pushing him forwards so he gained more momentum as he kept swinging--like how they used to hang out.
Etho sat in his usual spot, leaning against the tree trunk. "You remember we used to hide notes in the upper branches for Tango to find when he was busy with other things, Impulse?"
"Oh, yeah." Impulse sat next to him as they watched Tango swing. "I forgot about that. Sometimes it would take days for him to find."
"Weeks, actually," Tango piped up. "I was just so occupied with all the problems popping up that I never got time to hang out with you two. Impulse was supposed to be in the castle, helping me, but he was rarely there."
Impulse rolled his eyes, but he didn't deny it.
Etho was happy to see that they were playfully bantering again, but he could still hear the bitterness in Tango's voice as he remembered how Impulse was rarely around to help him.
There was still tension between them--especially since they were fixing problems Tango himself caused. That was a constant reminder of what happened in the past.
"Hey, speaking of problems," Etho remembered, changing the subject as best as he could, "How's it going with fixing the power outage? Any progress?"
Tango twiddled his thumbs as he thought. "The technology isn't going to be coming back anytime soon, that's for sure. The Ravager completely destroyed the Redstone power core, and it's going to take a long time to build a new core from scratch."
"Building one is already really complicated," Impulse said. "And this power core needs to be strong enough to power an entire kingdom. Now that people are branching out to other sectors again, there's probably going to have to be a few smaller ones for different areas, too."
"I'm pretty good when it comes to Redstone--Impulse, too--but we're both too busy with everything else that's happening right now," Tango said. "We don't have the time to develop a whole power core."
He turned around to face Etho. "I hate to ask, Etho, but do you think you could do it?"
Etho knew he couldn't. He was all over the place at the moment--helping each Wanderer with their job as best as he could. He definitely didn't have the time to build a whole power core, much less multiple of them.
He opened his mouth to apologize and say he couldn't, but he paused as something occurred to him. He felt an initial sense of guilt for forgetting them over the course of a few months, but he remembered their dead bionic eye and how they'd explained the Black Market's technology easily.
Iskall might be able to help with this problem.
"I might know someone who can help," he said, a small smile growing on his face. "This might be a weird request, but do you think you could try and remove some wither roses in the Labyrinth?"
Tango looked confused. "Wither roses? I thought we had taken care of those."
"There's a small patch in an unexplored part of the Labyrinth," Etho explained. "Easy to miss. I ran across it a couple of months back."
"Scar could probably do it with his crystals," Impulse put in. "I'll ask him if you want."
"That's perfect. Thanks."
They talked for a bit more after that. It felt nice to just hang out, taking turns on the new swing, and discussing lighter things after the initial heavy conversation they had--what the newly renovated Keep sectors would look like, the old Forest and its secrets, what they would do once all the repairs were finished.
Then, the conversation came to an abrupt halt as a loud rustling came from the leaves above them. A moment later, Grian crashed through the canopy and landed with a resounding thud next to Etho.
"There you guys are." He had leaves in his hair and his wings were ruffled, like he'd been flying all over the Dungeon to find them. "Listen--there's something you really need to see."
As Grian led them through the Keep and onto the Crossroads, Etho was reminded suddenly of what had happened back in the Wanderers' old base camp--back when Grian had come back with the news of a fourth Ravager attacking the Keep.
The mood while walking across the Blackstone bridges right now was definitely similar, and that was what worried Etho. Judging by the look on Impulse's face, he felt the same way.
Grian made a turn and headed to the Ruins camp, which felt like the reverse of what had happened before. That didn't help Etho's suspicions, either. Grian wouldn't meet any of their eyes, and he hurried forward like whatever was happening couldn't wait.
When they got there, the rest of the Wanderers were already gathered. They were huddled around the dead door at the end of the Ruins, for some reason. The worried murmuring Etho heard as they got closer reminded him--yet again--of what had happened before.
Etho and the others pushed through the crowd to get to the front, where they stopped dead. The problem was obvious, but no one was sure what it meant or how it had happened.
The door was open. Scar had assured Etho that it was locked. No one could open it. They'd tried and failed. No one knew where it led to.
But now...it was wide open for everyone to see.
What really worried them, though, was what laid on the other side. It looked like a whole new area--unlike anything they'd seen before. It was about as foreign as the sectors outside of the Keep used to be for Etho, and he didn't like that comparison.
...Looks like there was more to the Dungeon than any of them had realized.
"The Dungeon...it's changing again."
-
So, a little explanation about whatever the heck happened in those last few paragraphs!
Remember when Decked Out was still going on, and Tango was talking about a future Decked Out in Season 8? That's what this is hinting at! So, yes, there will most likely be a sequel once that rolls around, which is the first time I've given a book a sequel :D
I don't have any idea what will happen for that book, but I do know that I want to focus on more worldbuilding and lore, as I feel like I didn't do as much as I was hoping to for this book haha
So, what happens next? The main story is done now, which is absolutely insane! That's three books I've written for Hermitcraft now, which is crazy. I'm not quite done yet, though--if you've been around for my other stories, you might remember I tend to go back and mass edit the story and add extra details like that
I'll also be publishing a few extra chapters! One will be a playlist, like usual, but the next three will be a tad different. Since this is the first proper AU I've written, I'll be coming up with some explanations about the universe that I'll split up into three chapters: Sectors, Etho, Impulse, and Tango's backstories, and the events leading up after the Ravagers went loose (so basically the story explained in more detail)
Those chapters are easier to write, so they'll come out quicker than these did ^^
I'll save all the sappy stuff for the final extra like I normally do, but again, seriously--thank you guys for sticking around! This is probably one of my favorite stories I've written, so I'm really glad that you guys seemed to enjoy it (even if it's not as popular as, say, Origins) <3
Thanks for reading!