I hope you enjoy this chapter, I procrastinated-
I've worked really hard on it, and as always, if you catch any spelling or grammar mistakes, lemme know :]
I also made Gacha characters (for the book's characters. I call them visuals, lemme know if you'd wanna see them-)
(Also there are ships that aren't really that obvious and some that are, you can take them platonically if you'd like but they might seem more romantic xD)
One last thing, my discord server IS more developed, anyone wanting to join can! The link in the discord server chapter (not an actual chapter ofc) should still work.
Also 4,162 words. Shorter than last chapter, but if I made it any longer I'd go insane lol
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Sabre heads back to the Green Leader's quarters to check up on Time. Shadow hadn't come with him, but it didn't bother him, especially if he won't be taunted by him for now. They spoke about how he was feeling, and Shadow just felt uneasy. Sick wasn't really the word for it anymore, he was just trying to choose his path and it was stressing him out. Sabre will let him decide, leaving him be for now.
He's makes it back to the Green Leader's quarters, and he knocks on the door. Rainbow M opens it for him. "Oh, hey Sabre!"
"Hey, is Time doing okay?"
"Yeah, it's been a few hours so I was going to see if I could find the Green Leader." He says, walking back into the room.
Sabre follows him, and sits down in the chair again. "He'll be back soon, I'm sure." He looks over at Time, who is laying down now. "You doing okay buddy?"
"I have a small headache, but that's about it." He brings his arms above his head.
"It'll go away soon, I'm hoping." Sabre lays his head on the bed again.
Time Steve looks down at him. "You haven't slept, have you?"
Sabre shakes his head. "None of us have, really."
Time Steve sighs, pulling Sabre up onto the bed with him. "Go to sleep, then." He motions for Rainbow M to come and lay with them as well, and he does. The three of them fall asleep shortly after.
~Time Skip~
Green Leader was walking back to his quarters, and stops to notice his door is left open. He looks inside, seeing Time Steve, Rainbow M, and Sabre somehow sleeping on the bed together. Not questioning it, he closes the door and walks up the stairs. He was going to grab the three of them for a meeting, but they need to sleep.
He walks into the meeting room, beelining it for his chair. Orange, Yellow, Blue, and Indigo are already here. Green Leader sits down in his chair, as Light Steve walks up the stairs. Violet Leader walks in behind him, walking over to his chair and sitting down.
"Green Leader, where are Sabre, Time, and Rainbow?" Light Steve asks. He had called this meeting to discuss what they were going to do about either the Demons, or revealing Rainbow M to the people.
The Green Leader looks over to him, "They were asleep, and they seemed to need sleep, so I didn't wake them up."
Light Steve nods. "Understandable. Well.. I'm sure you all know why we're here.." He begins, and everyone is at the edge of their seats. "We should wait for Cherry and the Professor before we do anything."
Everyone agrees, and they wait for the two cloaked steves to appear. A few moments pass, and they finally arrive. Light Steve stands, "Good, you're both here. We need to talk about.. you know."
Cherry nods. "Yes, I agree. I feel like they should be here as well, where are they?"
"They're asleep, I didn't want to bother them." Green Leader chimes in, standing up.
Light Steve sits down. "You have something you need to say first, Green Leader?"
"Indeed I do. I.. when I went to get them, the Hero was.. he looked different." He looks at the floor.
"Different how?" Yellow Leader asks.
"He.. well, he took his cloak off—"
Cherry steps forward. "I'm sorry, he WHAT?!"
"Calm down, Cherry. I'm sure he thought his identity wouldn't really be.. revealed, but I think it's fairly obvious now." The Green Leader looks at Cherry and Professor Red. "He has red markings all over him now, and if what I'm thinking is correct, your cover is blown. You and your friends are Red Steves." Every leader looks straight at the two cloaked figures.
Cherry steps backwards. "Uh.."
~At the abandoned library~
"Why are we here, and where.. is here?"
"The Rainbow Kingdom. This place won't last long with everything that's happening to it, we need to help them."
"Sure, while the three of us are supposed to be dead, we're gonna go and save people we don't even know."
"That's exactly the plan, they don't know us. They won't recognize us. You need to stop being so paranoid, Sav."
"Well I'm only paranoid because we don't know for sure if nobody will recognize us, mainly you!" 'Sav' replies, raising his voice slightly.
"Guys, please don't fight. We have these coats and masks, we can wear those. They won't be able to recognize us unless we take them off, which we won't, right?"
"Yeah, I know, but they could capture us and force our identities out of us!" Sav exclaims. He does not like the idea of their identities being revealed. Especially if someone does happen to know them.
"Calm down, Sav. If we show we mean no harm I'm sure they won't do that—"
"YEAH RIGHT! They could fake it for all we know, and we all know they'll think you're too different, Envir!" Sav replies. "They would kill you or something."
"I doubt they would do that, if they truly need help they'll do anything for it."
Sav rolls his eyes, "Sure, believe what you want."
"Will you both hush?! We need to be cautious, we don't know who's out here right now."
"Sorry boss!" Envir leans against a tree next to him, holding a sapling in his hand. 'It's not much longer, my friends.. don't worry. I'll bring you all back.' He holds the sapling against his chest, smiling slightly.
The older of the group, the one they call their boss, holds out a green and yellow looking object. "Don't worry, old friend. You'll be back with us soon."
~Back at the Rainbow Kingdom~
Cherry laughs nervously. "I don't know what you're talking about.."
Green Leader steps towards him. "Yes you do. Now I know there was only a fifty percent chance of me being right, but now I know I am. You're nervous."
"Uh.." Cherry looks over to the Professor, and then back to the other leaders. "Okay fine, you got me." He takes his hood off. "I'm a Red Steve, happy?"
Light Steve immediately stands up. "Why have we not seen any of you if you're still alive?!"
Professor Red takes his hood off as well, "Because we didn't want anyone to know we were here, duh."
"Why though?! It's not like—"
"We were in danger. The First Hero had it out for the Second Hero, and so he hid us to keep us safe." Cherry replies.
Light Steve runs his hand through his hair. "And nobody seemed to know this, why?"
Professor Red crosses his arms. "He told the other leaders he was the last Red Steve. He was obviously lying, there were many others recently! Faceless, The Great Librarian, Reverse Steve, I think there was one called Ghost Steve-"
Yellow Leader stands up abruptly at the mention of Faceless. Orange Leader stutters over his words when he hears of Faceless and Reverse Steve.
Cherry smacks his hand onto the Professor's face. "For one thing, where did you learn of these other Red Steves?" He puts his hand down and stares into Professor Red's soul.
"Sabre told me about them, why?"
"He would meet more Red Steves.. alright sure, whatever. But keep your mouth shut."
Orange Leader stands up, "I'm sorry, they were both Red Steves?!"
Professor Red nods. "Yes, and they were good friends of ours. They went crazy though."
Cherry rolls his eyes. "Much like you have."
"Very true."
Orange Leader sits down, "My life has been a lie."
Yellow Leader sits back down as well, "So you're breaking your own rules right now why exactly?"
"Well.." Cherry fishes his hat out of his pocket, and puts it on. "Maybe because my apprentice is mentally unwell and decides to help a non-steve over keeping his own race safe."
Professor Red fake coughs, turning around. "As true as that is, you know he did it for good reasons. Well, one of his own and another for the greater good, as he calls it." He turns back to the Red Leader.
Light Steve, still standing, crosses his arms. "So.. you are the leader? That hat looks to be a dead giveaway."
"I am, yes."
"How long have you been the leader?"
Cherry chuckles, and shakes his head. "A little after the First Hero fell, why?"
Light Steve scoffs, letting his legs give in. He falls back onto his chair. "How."
"Well you can blame the Professor for that. He's the one who made us practically immortal."
Violet Leader blinks in confusion. "Immortal..?"
"We're very old remember? There's no way a normal steve could live this long, is there?"
Light Steve holds a hand to his forehead, sitting up straight. "I think this discussion is over.. we will wait for the others to continue this meeting." The others agree, either nodding or saying yes. "Cherry, that chair belongs to you now." He points to the red chair. "You're the leader."
Cherry turns to it, "Yeah.."
Light Steve stands up. "I'd say this meeting is dismissed, we will talk again later. I'm going to sleep or something.." He speed walks to the stairs and leaves.
Green Leader walks towards the stairs. "They're asleep in my bed, I'll just go walk around or something." He turns towards the Red Leader. "I'm sorry for being pushy, I'm a bit impulsive."
The Red Leader smiles, "It's fine, if anything I'm grateful."
The Green Leader leaves. Soon, the rest of the leaders leave as well.
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Rainbow M wakes up with a jolt, looking around quickly. He sees seven steves, and they're just staring at him. He backs up into the Red Steve he saw, and immediately stands up. "Where am I and who are you?!" He goes to push past them, but they keep him surrounded. "Who are you!" The Indigo Steve walks towards him.
'Do not be afraid, little one.'
The Red Steve puts a hand on M's shoulder, scaring M half to death. He turns around, and pushes them away. "Don't touch me!" He pushes past the Red Steve and runs. Eventually he hits a wall, and he turns around. They're surrounding him again. "Who are you, and what do you want?!" He looks down to his hands, not wanting to see them. Their faces are horrifying. He notices his hands are red again.
The Red Steve wraps him in a hug, and that sets off M's fight or flight. He tries to push them away, but to no avail. 'We are not here to hurt. We are here to help.'
The Indigo Steve pulls the Red Steve away, saying something incoherent. M is terrified right now. Who were these people? The Violet Steve steps towards M. 'It's alright. Do not fret. We will not hurt you.' They hold a hand out for him, and he hesitates. What if they hurt him? He notices they're all the chromatics, and ponders for a moment. If they're all the chromatics, and his hands are red again..
"Are you.. the old leaders?" He asks, backing up again slightly just in case. They all freeze, those who weren't facing him turn to do so. "Uh.. if I'm wrong then who are you?"
The Violet Steve stands straight, moving their hand back. 'You are correct, little one.'
M hugs himself, "So I'm.. dreaming?"
The Violet Steve chuckles, 'In a way, I guess you are.'
"What was the point of this?"
The Red Steve walks back towards M. 'There are new heroes rising. With heroes, come villains. Be careful.' They push M backwards, and he falls into the void.
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Rainbow M wakes up to someone pushing him off of the bed. "Ow."
Someone suddenly hugs him from the side, "M YOU'RE FINALLY AWAKE!"
"Yeah could you not make me fall off the bed?" He looks down to see it's Sabre who was hugging him.
"Sorry, you wouldn't wake up. You were saying weird things, we tried to wake you up but it didn't work." Sabre hugs him tighter. "Thought you wouldn't wake up."
M hugs him back, his mind going back to that dream. He could remember it clearly somehow. What if it wasn't a dream, but an actual warning? He shivers, holding Sabre closer.
"Are you okay? Was it a nightmare?"
M shakes his head. "It.. I think it was a message."
Sabre nods in understanding, and just lays his head on M's chest. "It wasn't scary was it?"
M rests his head on top of Sabre's. "Not really scary, but.. ominous."
Time Steve sits on the other side of M. "Are you alright though? You looked scared when you sat up." He wraps an arm around M's shoulder.
M leans into Time Steve. "I'm fine, it's just.. I'm confused. I feel like it meant something." He closes his eyes, thinking back to what the Red Steve said. 'There are new heroes rising, and with heroes come villains..' He doesn't understand what it means. He decides to distract himself. "Are the Demon Steves still a thing or did they run away? I hope they ran, I really don't feel like fighting."
Sabre lifts his head up. "I haven't really been outside the kingdom so I couldn't really tell you. I doubt they're gone though."
Time Steve agrees. "They're quite obstinate." He lays his head on M's shoulder.
"Yeah that's a great word for it." Sabre laughs, laying his head back down.
M smiles, "You two are holding me captive, can you let go?"
"Absolutely not, you woke up kinda scared I'm not letting go of you." Sabre retorts, holding M tighter. Time Steve does the same, trying not to suffocate the new Hero at least.
"You two are something else.." He chuckles, resting his head on Sabre's again.
They stay this way for a while, just talking. Then the door opens and Green Leader walks in, "Finally you're awake. Come on, we're having another meeting and you need to be there this time."
Time Steve giggles, "Time."
Green Leader smiles, rolling his eyes. "Come on you three." He walks out of the room, probably heading to the meeting room.
Sabre groans. "I don't wanna get up.."
Time Steve let's go of M and stands up. "We have to now, come on." He helps pry Sabre off of M, and eventually they finally leave the room. Sabre, being the last one out, closes the door behind him. They walk up to the meeting room. They make it there, and stand beside Light Steve's chair, next to the stairs. The other leaders finally arrive as well. The Red Leader isn't wearing his cloak anymore, and is sitting in the red chair.
M looks straight at him. Professor Red walks in and stands next to his chair, also not wearing his cloak. M is speechless, to say the least. "Why are you not.."
Green Leader clears his throat, "That would be my fault." Cherry nods, confirming the statement.
M shakes his head. "You were the one who wanted to hide us so bad."
Cherry looks at him. "You were the one who gave us away."
"Sure, whatever."
Light Steve stands up. "Enough fighting, we already know. There's no use arguing over that."
M rolls his eyes. "Yeah yeah, what's this meeting for exactly?"
"We need to come to a decision, are we revealing you or are we not? Also, are we leaving your other identity a secret or..?" Light Steve sits back down, not wanting to fall over again.
"Well.. if you guys figured it out who says nobody else will?" He crosses his arms, "What about the Demon Steves though? What are we gonna do about them?"
Sabre takes a step forward. "Well, we figure out if they're still out there for one, and two if they are we fight them or something. That's the only thing we can do." He hugs himself, "I just don't know if they'll reset reality even though I have the Darkness.."
"I think you'll do just fine, Sabre." Shadow suddenly walks up the stairs, and Sabre turns to him. "They're still out there, but the power you have, and the power M now has, you'll win this war." He says, and then crosses his arms. "I hope.."
Sabre takes a deep breath. "Alright.. so we have a fighting chance. That's good." The leaders don't question it, knowing there's someone they can't see or hear.
Violet Leader stands. "So.. we have a chance to win this fight?"
Sabre looks over at him. "Yeah, we do. Let's just hope we can."
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Sav, Envir, and their boss are standing outside the Rainbow Kingdom. Sav isn't sure this is a good idea. "Sir.. do you really think just showing up like this is a good idea?"
The eldest of the three nods. "You saw the Demons. You feel the threat. We need safety, and they need help. The larger amount of people on this side, the better." He stares at the gate, which is closed. "We just need to wait for them to open the gate."
Envir stays quiet, not knowing what to say. He clutches the sapling close to him. 'Soon..' He thinks. 'You'll be with us soon.'
Sav shakes his head. "Whatever you say, boss.."
They're not that close to the gate, so if someone were to be patrolling above them they'd see the mysterious figures. It's just a waiting game now.
The three of them just wait, and it doesn't take much longer for someone to see them. A Colorless Guard sees them, and immediately runs to wards a tower, to go down. They run towards the citadel.
They get into the citadel, and run up the stairs. They make it up the stairs and stop to catch their breath. Everyone stares at them, and Light Steve stands up. "What's wrong?"
They finally catch their breath and look up, noticing Red Steves and a new Hero. "I'm ignoring these three for now." They start, and Light Steve chuckles. "There are three more figures outside the gate. I'm unsure if they're hostile or friendly, but it seems they've been there for a while."
Light Steve turns to the other leaders. "Guess we're postponing the rest of this meeting again. Sabre, you're coming with me. The rest of you stay here." Light Steve turns back to the guard as Sabre walks up behind him. "Let's go." The three of them go down the stairs.
"Be safe, Shy!"
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The Colorless Guard runs up the tower, while Light Steve and Sabre stand at the gate. Light Steve looks up to the guard. "Open the gate."
The guard hesitates, but does as they're told. Light Steve holds a colorless spear and a shield, while Sabre just has a shield. "Who are you?" Light Steve asks, slowly approaching the thee hooded figures.
The eldest holds his arms in front of him, a way of showing he's peaceful. "We're.. travelers of sorts. We heard you're in danger, and want to help in any way we can."
Sabre steps forward, stopping to stand next to Light Steve. "How do we know you aren't lying? You're wearing cloaks."
The one with a scythe chuckles. "You trusted your friend, M, didn't you?"
The oldest looks at him and smacks the back of his head. "Quiet, Sav." He looks at Sabre. "I assure you, seeing your interactions with this person were not our intent, and we don't know their identity either. Although we have been watching this kingdom for.. a while. We'd like to help you all, if you'll let us." He bows, gesturing his comrades to do the same.
Sav bows, grumbling about something. The other figure, who is holding a sapling for some reason, does as well. "My name is Envir. It's a pleasure to meet you both."
"There's no need for that much formality. Come with us, and we can talk peacefully." Light Steve turns around and walks back towards the citadel.
The three cloaked steves follow him, and Sabre follows behind them to make sure they don't do something that would show hostility. They reach the citadel, and Light Steve leads them upstairs to the meeting room. They all walk in, Light Steve motioning for the guests to stand in the middle of the room. The oldest of the three guests looks to the Red Steves in the room, and then to the new Hero. "Since when were Red Steves back into the world?"
Sav looks around the room, "Another Hero.." He whispers, backing towards Envir. "I don't trust these people, boss."
"I know you don't, but you have to remember why we're here." The oldest steve places a hand on Sav's shoulder. "If anything happens, you know what I can do to stop it." He looks back to the Red Steves, and freezes. "Sav.. do you recognize either of them?"
Cherry perks up. "How would you know us?" He leans forward in his chair.
Professor Red tilts his head as well. "I don't recall communicating with outsiders since before the First Hero fell." He says, and walks in circles around them.
The older mysterious steve chuckles. "You haven't changed, have you Professor?"
He stops in his tracks. "So you do know me. Hm. I don't recognize you at all, so tell me, who are you?" He steps in front of him and stares at him, obviously not knowing where his eyes are specifically.
The cloaked steve takes a step back. "I don't think you'll appreciate my answer, Goggles."
Professor Red freezes in place, looking like he's seen a ghost. "How do you.. know that name..?"
The Red Leader stands up and walks over to them. "Who are you, and how do you know so much about us?" He shakes the Professor's shoulders, snapping him out of whatever trance he was in.
The steve sighs, "I don't think I should be allowed to tell you."
Envir holds the sapling closer to his chest, as the Professor looks at him. "That sapling.." He walks towards Envir, keeping a distance as he understands his fears. "You're.. a Forest Steve. Aren't you?"
Sav groans. "Boss you told us nobody would recognize us, so what's this about?!"
The leader places a hand on Sav's shoulder once again. "I didn't think anyone from my past would be alive okay?! Stop accusing me of being all-knowing, I'm not." He takes his hand off of Sav's shoulder and puts it on his face.
Professor Red looks back to the other two hooded steves. "I'll ask again, who are you and how do you know who I am?" He growls, growing impatient.
The leader puts his hands up once again, "I'm not sure you'll be happy knowing who I am, okay?"
Professor Red shakes his head. "I don't care, knowing who you are is better than not knowing why you know so much about me."
Rainbow M steps in between them. "More importantly, can we talk about the voices I'm hearing? They're unnerving and I had a strange dream."
Professor Red glares at him. "I'll get your identity soon, mystery man. That Forest Steve shouldn't be alive."
Light Steve move to stand in front of the Professor and pushes him back slightly. "More important than voices, no offense M, what is a Forest Steve?"
Cherry sighs. "They're an old race of steves who we're destroyed in a fire. I'm assuming it was either the First Hero's fault, or the Demon Steves."
The leader of the three guests scoffs. "He should not be labeled a hero, he destroyed too many steves for that title to remain his." He crosses his arms.
Cherry nods. "I agree, but he did push the Demons back, you can't deny that."
Sabre stands there listening to them argue, and Shadow realizes some things. "Sabre." Sabre nods slightly, telling Shadow he's listening. "The one refusing to say his name is the Second Hero. I can.. feel it."
Sabre turns to Shadow quickly. "I'm sorry, say WHAT?!"
That catches the other leaders' attention. Blue Leader stands up. "What's wrong, Sabre?"
Sabre shakes his head. "Shadow, what do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what you think I mean. I.. since I'm Void Steve's Darkness, I have a small point of access to his memories." He shifts uncomfortably.
Sabre coughs, shocked out of his mind. "Why did I not know of this?!"
The leader of the guest party tilts his head. "Who is he talking to and what are they talking about?"
Light Steve looks at him. "That's a long story, and I don't know." He looks back at Sabre. "What's he saying?"
Sabre ignores him for a moment. "So, tell me then."
Shadow looks at him. "His name is 'The Collector'."
Sabre nods. "Okay." He turns back to the cloaked steves.
"I believe he goes by Colle."
Sabre smiles a bit. "So tell me, what are you doing here, Colle?"