After taking the potion I decided to show Techno around the area aswell.
We started at the mine, it was a quick look though, since, uh, it's just a mine, not much to look at.
Then we went to the village. I had cleaned up since the incidence so it didn't look as much as a genocide as it had done when it happened.
A few flowers had started sprouting where villagers had fallen dead, and where I had buried them. It was weird how so much destruction is showcased in such a pretty way, but at the same time, how so much pretty can contain so much pain and destruction.
I showed him where I had traded the most, the house(remains) of the villagers that were quick to take me in, and I showed him the library.
I explained the story of the librarian to him, and we looked at some of the books that remained sort of intact from fire. While looking at the village Techno was very quiet, he simply just listened while I talked, once in a while he would include a comment but he mostly just listened. It was nice, being able to share with someone, you know, finally feeling a connection with a real person.
we were looking at a book about flowers and dye, when we heard something outside. Something like a bunch of footsteps, and yelling.
We both looked at each other quickly, and then without muttering a single word, we both unsheated our swords and rushed out the door.
In the distance, the edge of the village, droves of pillagers were seeping into the streets of the already deserted village.
"Well, shit," I muttered, Techno looked the opposite way from me, where an equally large group of pillagers were doing the exact same. "Ever taken on a raid before?" I asked swinging my sword smoothly in my hand.
"Not in this world, no. You?" Techno responded, neither of us taking our eyes off of the pillagers, still nearing hastily.
"Nope. So this is gonna be real fun," I said at last, my tone darkening. Simultaneously we started running in different directions.
I built my way ontop of a house and started shooting with my bow, killing a few pillagers, but it wasn't enough for they were quickly nearing the other group where Techno was stood fighting.
I jumped down, and started slashing at them, killing them one after one, a continuous flow of dark red, coating my sword and arms. And yet I felt a thrill in it, an excitement, or spark of adrenalin. But no matter what the feeling was, it was good feeling of empowerment.
I ran behind Techno, so we stood back to back and fought each group of pillagers. I yelled to him that I was behind him, just so he wouldn't think there were pillagers on each side of him trying to attack him, and then almost kill me in an attempt to protect himself.
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Quickly most of them were dead, and finally we could take a breath and turn to look at each other, his arms and most parts of his torso was covered in blood, aswell as some drops and splatters smudged in his face.
I didn't know what it was; the way the blood drops complemented his beautiful face or perfectly lined his straight jaw, the way his blood soaked shirt clung tightly to his muscular overbody, or if it was the way it radiated from him, that he had enjoyed this just as much as I. But I was immediately drawn to him, an almost overwhelming lust to just throw myself at him and connect our lips - lips that had exchanged very little words, but yet so many in the matter of 24 hours.
I was frozen for I don't even know how long, but to my luck Techno had also stood numb in his place.
"You've- uh, got something, right-.. right there," I said pointing to my own cheekbone, quickly trying to remove my earlier thoughts.
"Uh, here?" Techno asked, "trying" to remove it with his hand, which was absolutely covered in blood so he just smudged it out instead.
"No, you didn't quite get it, let me just get it for you." I stepped closer and started carefully trying to remove "the something" but just smearing it out even more, eventually covering his entire cheek while smiling uncontrollably. "Yeah I think I might've gotten it now," I chuckled while still smudgering his cheek.
"Oh, really? Well you also have a little bit, just a drop, you know," Techno said cockily, and then he took a step even closer to me, minimalizing the space between our faces to just about 6''
He started out by pretending to try and remove something, but it quickly turned into him caressing my cheek, while slowly leading his eyes to look deeply into mine, his other hand reaching up to hold the other side of my face.
A loud noise came from behind my back, Techno quickly looked up, while I tried to recollect my self.
A few pillagers were still left, and meanwhile Techno and I had had a little moment or whatever that was, they had gotten their ravager prepared.
We both quickly found our bows and started shooting at them, trying to lower the health of them all before they neared.
I found my sword and started leading the pillagers a bit away, so Techno could go at the ravanger.
I killed the pillagers and went back to help Techno kill the ravager. He had semi-good control of it, but it was safe to say he still needed help.
I started slashing from the other side and it got confused and kept switching between going for him or going for me. We had gotten some really good hits on it, which only resulted in it getting more and more irritated.
I slashed at it again, after Techno slashed at it, and suddenly it started charging at him.
It ran hard into him, shooting him backwards, and continued charging after him. Next time it charged at him, he shot backwards and fell to the ground, it was about to run at him again, but before it reached I ran and jumped at it.
I held the sword underneath me so it would spear the ravager straight down in the neck as I landed beside it, dragging the sword with me and opening half its neck up.
The ravager fell dead to the ground as I ran over to Techno, who already tried to balance himself up from the ground. I quickly put one of his arms over my shoulders and used all my strength to get him all the way up.
He put a lot of weigth on me and he stumbled just as much, so it was clear to me that he was in more pain than he would be willing to admit.
I didn't ask him anything and he didn't say anything as I slowly led him to our horses. "Do you think you can ride?" I broke the silence, we stood at Carl but he didn't make any movement to get on it.
"Oh, yeah, definitely." He removed his arm from around my shoulders, and immediately he slumped a little. He tried raising his foot to the stirrup, but he couldn't lift his leg up to it and then he started loosing balance again.
I quickly supported him again, "I might need some help," he chuckled with a pained expression. I found some planks he could stand on, and then I helped him the rest of the way.
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We rode to my base in a slow tempo and as soon as we arrived I dismounted and helped Techno off of Carl and brought him inside to one the quest beds.
"Where does it hurt?" I asked softly, while finding some food in my bag.
"Uhm, well my ribs and my leg has probably seen better days." Of course he responds in the most sarcastic way he could, this was something I was quick to realize about him; he was a very sarcastic person.
"Ok, I'm gonna make another healing potion, but it'll take a while, so eat some food, rest if you can and I'll be back." I left the door open and turned around as I started cooking up the potion, following the recipe thoroughly.
Two hours later the potion was finished. I had peeked into the quest room every now and then, Techno had struggled with finding comfort, that of course makes sense, but luckily he started to relax not too long ago.
When I entered the room his eyes were drooping a little and his breathing slower and lighter. He tiredly looked up at my arrival.
I placed the bottle at his lips and lifted it up slowly letting him drink the magic liquid. As soon as he had consumed the last drop, his face heated up, a vein popping in his forehead for a second, then he got a weird expression and I guessed it was because the (most likely) broken bones were healing.
"You're amazing," he stated and quickly stood up and hugged me, a tight hug where he lifted me of the ground a little while we both chuckled and smiled.
He set me down on the ground again, I placed my hands on his chest while looking into his eyes and smiling. "You should get changed, out of that dirty clothing, and then get some sleep, it's late and it's been a long day."
"Only if you go to bed aswell." Gosh, he was so childish.
"I will, I will," I laughed as I again left the room, now closing the door, but not before giving him a bucket of water to clean himself with.
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Next morning I woke early by the sun lighting up the room completely, so I decided to just start getting ready and making some breakfast.
When I was done preparing the food I knocked on Technos door and slowly opened the door. He didn't wake up from my knocking so I walked in and carefully shook his shoulder.
He grumbled a little, and tried covering his eyes with his arms. "Five more minutes," he said, not even opening his eyes. First now I realized he didn't have a shirt on under the covers.
"No, Techno, you have to get up now," I whispered, and this time he reacted. He opened his eyes abruptly and smile tucked at his lips.
"I'll be up in a minute, Y/n." I smiled and left the room so he could get dressed.
Quickly after he came out and we ate breakfast. After he packed his things down and then helped me do some of the chores that needed doing. I harvested wheat and potatoes and he would replant some, and he helped feeding and preparing Carl and Miles for our long ride back to Technos base.
We mounted our horses and started heading in the direction of his base. We had brought all the supplies we would need to make more potions and share them with the others, and some extra stuff for me to use, since I would probably be staying for a while.
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After a lot of chill riding, some racing eachother, and a short supply gathering break, we arrived at Technos base. We had traveled almost the entire day, and it would soon be time to eat dinner.
As we neared, Phil ran out of his cottage, looking relieved but also angry at the same time.
"A note! That was all you left! And it was not even a very reasuring one... I was worried sick," he scolded us. He looked sternly at us for a moment before he hugged us.
As Phil pulled away from Techno and turned to me, Techno scratched his neck as he began to speak. "I'm sorry Phil, we just needed to be quick, you know."
Phil pulled away from me and looked at us both apologetic, "It's ok, just please explain to me what happened, all the note said was that 'Y/n got hurt and we had to hurry to her base,' whatever you had to do at your base, Y/n, it must've worked, i guess - TECHNO! IS THAT BLOOD ON YOUR SHOES?!"
Phil looked stern at us yet again. "Phil let's just take this inside and we'll explain everything, ok?" I said calmly, and with a little hesitation, Phil turned around and lead us into his cottage.
We sat down on a couch and we explained about how I had forgotten to take on my armour before fighting three skeletons and then getting hurt, and that it was the reason we had to go back to my base, because I had a healing potion.
We explained how I had shown Techno around and how a raid suddenly started, how we fought it all off but the ravager hurt Techno, and how we had to make another healing potion for him.
Phil was very interested in hearing about potions, so I explained how I got a book from the village's librarain in another language, but somehow I understood it. We told him that we brought supplies to make more potions.
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I spent a few weeks at their base, I got to know everyone better, and I was starting to get used to sleeping at night instead of protecting the base. I had spent the weeks making potions and traveling back and forth between my base and their base.
When I was at their base - which I was most of the time - I slept in Technos cabin, which I was just about to do.
I was packing away the last potion of the day, then I said goodnight to Niki who had kept me company, and after she had left the cabin, Techno entered. I hugged him goodnight aswell, and then I left up to my room.
I immediately fell asleep, totally exhausted from making potions, training with Techno and Phil, and gathering food with Tommy and Tubbo.
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It was hot.
Everything was on fire.
But I didn't see fire, only red.
I started walking, but my foot hit something and I tripped.
I prepared to fall and get hurt but the impact was soft. My hand felt, wet.
It was dark red water. Thick, like.. blood.
Everywhere on the ground was dead bodies. They had different open wounds - it was my figting technique - I had killed them.
My sword was on the ground beside me, I grabbed it and stood up, people came running at me.
They looked like they wanted to attack, so attacked them back first. I killed them, life after life, lost to the blade of my sword, my entertainment.
I enjoyed this, how could I - I didn't know, but a smile grew on my face.
Blood... Kill... Enemy, attack... Blood...
Thoughts fogged my mind, but it was not my own thoughts, it was like other voices in my head.
I listened to the voices, it felt good to do what they told me to, everything else didn't matter. It was like ecstasy.
You're a monster, how can you enjoy this?
It was not the other voices, it was familiar voices. It was all my friends, repeating the first three words.
The voices tried to speak louder than the other. Everytime I heard the voice of the Librarian or Techno or Phil or Ranboo or any of the other people at the base, the voices would be louder, telling me to kill them all.
It became so loud. Like thousands of people shouting around me, but there were only the corpses of the people I, myself had killed.
I closed my eyes shut but it was still there, everything was still there.
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I opened my eyes abruptly, back in my bed again. I was covered in cold sweat. I was struggeling to breathe.
Kill... Blood.... Why are you panicking?... Blood.... Kill, it'll make you feel better....
I was hyperventilating even further now, it was just a nightmare why can I still hear the voices?
I automatically curled up in a ball, clutching my head, hyperventilating.
The door opened slowly and someone walked in, I felt a pair of arms embrace me, a hand slowly brushing down my hair repeatedly and the other holding tightly around my waist.
"Shh, it's ok... You're fine... You're fine... I'm right here." I recognized the whisper to be Techno. He must've heard something through the wall and decided to check it out.
Eventually my breathing slowed down, and my arms found their way around Techno so I could hug him back. I held him tight, while I silently sobbed into his shoulder. The voices was quiet, so maybe it was just a flashback from the nightmare.
Techno shifted as I cried but I assumed he just sat himself on the bed. When I stopped crying at last, he slowly leaned back, dragging me with him until we both laid down on the bed, I curled up to his side, using his chest as a pillow, while he still had an arm around me.
He didn't say anything but I knew he was awake, and I knew he would wait for me to fall asleep.
And after some time, I finally drifted into sleep.
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I woke few hours later, the sun hitting my desk. I realized my head was still ontop of Technos chest, at first I didn't know what to do, a little reflex in me tried to move away, but an arm around me prevented me from moving away, and to be honest I didn't really mind it.
The arm he had around me lifted up, and his hand removed some hair strands from my face. He must have already been awake when I woke.
"Goodmorning," He whispered, his voice rid of the usual monotone and sarcasm, instead it was laced with kindness.
I looked up at him, our faces very close. "Goodmorning. How'd you sleep?" I whispered back, his arm around me again.
"I slept very well, thank you, but what about you?" He asked, with a hint of worry mingled with the kind.
"I slept alright." He gave a look as to say 'are you sure' to which I gave him a reasurring smile.
We didn't get up immediately; for a few moments we just laid there, listening to each others breathing. His breathing was calmingly slow, and slowly it matched with mine, or maybe it was my breathing that started matching his.
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We didn't have much to do that day, I made some more potions and after, Wilbur, Tubbo, and Tommy wanted me to help them get wood. It was most likely just so they had less to do, but I wanted to help anyway, at least I then knew of the job was done properly.
We just collected wood in the forest nearby, and with nearby, I mean it was literally like 30 metres away from the cabins and you could communicate simply by shouting or talking loudly.
"Just take as many trees as you can muster, and remember to replant," I told them as we started.
I stayed near the edge of the forest, enjoying the sun tickling my skin. I calmly hit the trees with my axe, taking my time to take them down and then replant.
What if it was a human?
I stiffened. It was the voice again, wasn't it?
Yeahh... imagine that tree being a human.... that would be great.... kill... kill.... blood.
I didn't know how to react, my body wouldn't move, I tried but I couldn't, or maybe it was the voices that tried to make me move, but it was no help, I could not move a mucsle.
A red hue filled my eyes, the trees were replaced with humans.
Blood.... Blood... Blood.
I wanted to go kill them, or, NO, I didn't, but I kinda did, NO! I didn't want to kill them, I don't want to see the way their eyes well up in tears as their life leave them. WHAT AM I THINKING??!
The humans that had stood so clear started to blur, they blurred a lot, almost like I was being spun.
"Y/n? Can you here me?" It was the faint voice of Techno, so far away he must be standing a mile away trying to shout at me.
(A/n- Chrissy, wake up, I don't like this!!) (sorry)(not really tho)
It became clearer and clearer what he said, the red hue started to get replaced with the normal green that the area normally had.
In a snap my eyes focus completely. Techno is standing infront of me, shaking my shoulders, a concerned expression painted on his face. Beside him I saw Phil, looking equally as concerned as Techno.
I blinked a few times, and started to look around me frantically, checking if the trees were still humans, to my relief they were back to logs and leaves.
Techno grabbed onto my shoulders again, but as soon as he made me look away from the trees, something in me thought the humans were back, so again I had to look at the trees, as many as I could.
Out of a sudden Technos arms wrapped around me, holding me in place, and successfully removed my focus from the trees.
"Y/n, what happened?" Phil asked carefully, as I made eyecontact with him over Technos shoulder.
I hesitated for a second, I wanted to just tell them, but maybe they'd dislike me if they knew I heard voices, and it was still new, so maybe I won't hear any tomorrow. "I-I don't know,"
"You looked at the trees, was there something wrong with the trees?" Phil continued to ask. I didn't know what to answer I just looked at him.
Before I could answer Techno pulled away so he could look me in the eyes, but he kept a hand comfortingly on my shoulder. "Is it connected with what happened last night?" Techno asked not letting me answer Phil's question.
I nodded, it was a little nod, but it was enough for them to see. "Last night? what happened last night?" Phil asked confused.
"Y/n had a nightmare last night, a pretty bad one I think." Techno answered, not in a clowning way, just to explain it.
"Oh, I get it, but what was the nightmare about, Y/n? It must've been bad if it still affects you." Phil spoke, almost in a fatherly way.
"I hear voices." I didn't hesitate this time, I just said it.
Phil and Techno looked at me, not weirdly as I had expected, instead I could see hope spring in their eyes. "It started in the nightmare last night, so it's still new, when I woke up I thought the nightmare was over, but then I heard the voices again. Then Techno came in and it stopped, I hadn't heard them since, so I thought maybe it was just a flashback or something. Then as we chopped wood, they started again."
They were quiet, their face expression not faltering but that was probably even more scary - not knowing what they were thinking. I started to walk back to the cabins.
I would just go back to my own base for a while, I thought. A rough hand grabbed my hand, I looked back. Techno pulled me into a hug, and after a while he whispered:
"I hear voices too."
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(3769 words)
A/n - The first half of this chapter did things to me that is better left unspoken. lol
I couldn't even fit this in two parts - this hurts me physically but I can't stop writing.
The last part is out tomorrow, xx.
I had so many ideas as to how this chapter could go, but I just decided with this one. The other was that one of the humans that replaced the trees would be a woman, that she would recognize as her mother. and then suddenly memories would come back, but those memories I won't tell 'cause I might use them in the next chapter, oop.
Oh well, kiss kiss, remember to drink water, eat food, and sleep. (like a bear)
(3893 words with a/n)