?????
"He has been captured"
"Excellent, what is our next move?"
"I will make sure he cannot run. He will submit to us"
"Wise, but what if he dies?"
"Either way the problem will be fixed and the balance will be restored. I don't care if he lives or dies"
"Are you sure we can trust Rendog to do what he is told?"
"This isn't the first time he's had help from us. We sent him the Listener in hopes we could rid ourselves of ̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ᔑ, but obviously failed. I doubt he will fail us again, especially with Etho".
"Yes, instead of Listening, Inthelittlewood instead went rogue. Disappointing."
"If all else fails you know the backup plan."
"Yes. They will truly never see it coming."
"Our biggest priority is obtaining a solid form in their world. We cannot hide in the void forever"
"Indeed. We need to get at least one of the Admins out of the picture. Two of them is far too dangerous. Especially when we don't know what the new one is capable of"
"Smart. But even so, they are nothing compared to us. We have been here far longer than them"
"Soon our brethren will roam free, and all those who oppose will join us. No more differences or hate, we will all be one"
The two stared at each other's masked faces and smiled grimly.
Xisuma
I paced back and forth across my room in frustration, sweat dripping down my forehead. I whipped around and typed a command into my communicator.
/locate player Grian
Still the same message appeared.
This player does not exist, or invalid code syntax. Please try again.
I breathed a sigh of nerves. I desperately hoped Grian was just lost somewhere, but I felt in my heart this wasn't true. Grian was a lot of things, but he wasn't one to run off when his friends needed him. I knew we had to find him before Ren did.
I decided I needed to gather a search party, that I dearly hoped wouldn't turn into a rescue party. I pushed the door open and stepped into the light. I spotted Pearl, Impulse, Cleo and Cub standing under a tree talking in hushed whispers. They noticed me and beckoned me over, looking worried.
"Have you seen False anywhere?" Pearl said with concern, "no one has seen her since last night".
"No I haven't" I tried to keep my voice calm, "but she's False, nothing could hurt her". The others nodded in agreement but they looked doubtful.
"Anyway, we need to find Grian" I stated, "who would like to come with me?"
"Are you sure we need to?" Cleo said, matter of fact, "it's Grian, he'll be fine and we don't want to risk being seen". Even though it was Cleo, her harsh tone still surprised me. I felt a little downhearted at her dismissiveness.
"Cleo has a point" Cub shrugged, "he'll be fine". I opened my mouth to respond, but Pearl got there first.
"Hey, this Grian! Our friend!" She hissed, "we have no idea what Ren is capable of, we're not just going to let him fend for himself. We're a team".
"I agree with Pearl" Impulse spoke up, "we have to find him". Pearl smiled at Impulse while Cub frowned. Cleo looked blank, not showing any hint of emotion.
"You don't have to come but I'm going" I said firmly, "with or without you".
"I'm coming" Impulse said with a nod.
"I'll come too" Pearl said with a glance at Cleo, "you should come too".
"Fine" Cleo said, "can't have you idiots getting yourselves into more trouble". Everyone turned to look at Cub.
"Sorry, but I'm staying here" he shook his head.
"Understandable" I sighed. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted Fwip striding towards us.
"Hey Fwip, can you look after the Hermits for me?" I asked, "we're going to go look for Grian".
"Can do" Fwip nodded, "keep an eye out for Joel too. Maybe take one of my people with you as well".
"I'll do that" I bowed my head, "thank you". Fwip smiled warmly.
In the end I took Pearl, Cleo, Impulse, Shelby and Katherine with me. I hadn't planned for such a large group but it was too late now. Besides, if we ran into trouble we'd have more fight power.
"Do we have any idea where they might be?" Katherine asked.
"I think we should check Sanctuary" I replied, "in case he got lost, came back and found we were gone".
"I doubt he'd be dumb enough to stick around there, given the state of Sanctuary" Cleo retorted, "it's not exactly hard to guess what happened".
"I think he's been kidnapped" Shelby said quietly, "I only met him briefly but I don't think he'd wander off".
"Both of those are possibilities, but I think it'd be best to check Sanctuary first" I said, feeling exasperated. I knew they were just trying to help but it was getting on my nerves. Shelby nodded, her eyes unfocusing and drifting over my shoulder. Shelby was quiet but she always seemed like she saw more than she let on. I wasn't quite sure how to feel about her.
"I agree with Shelby" Impulse put in, "I think Ren has taken him".
"Guys let just check Sanctuary first" Pearl rolled her eyes, "he's our admin and it'll only take a second".
"He's not my admin" Katherine shot back, "I don't have to listen".
"Then go home if you don't like it" Cleo growled, "I don't like it either but I trust Xisuma". I smiled gratefully at her. Cleo caught my gaze briefly before looking away.
"Thanks Cleo" I turned to Katherine, "I know you don't have to listen, but I'd be grateful you did. It's not about petty arguments. It's about finding our friends and making sure they're safe".
"You're right" Katherine bowed her head, "I'm sorry".
"It's okay" I smiled, "your opinions are completely valid. If you have a problem it's important you express it". Katherine smiled at me genuinely, warmth seeping into her eyes. I let out a long breath I didn't know I'd been holding. Feeling the air was lighter now, I turned to address everyone else.
"Let's go Sanctuary first, then we'll go to Hermitopia. Please try not to get seen, we don't want to make it worse by you getting captured" I gazed at everyone's faces, "everyone ready? Follow me". I turned and launched myself into the air, feeling relieved as I heard others following in quick succession. I felt someone brush up against my arm, turning to see Cleo coming up beside me.
"You handled that well" she strained to be heard over the wind, "I'm proud of you". I felt my insides go warm and fuzzy at the praise. Cleo didn't give compliments easily.
"Thank you" I replied with a smile. Cleo smiled back, her orange hair whipping in the wind.
I saw the charred remains of Sanctuary begin to load into view and I was once again struck with guilt. Even though I knew it wasn't my fault, I felt guilt on my friend's behalf. What had caused Tango to torch Sausage's empire was beyond me, but I knew I couldn't allow it to continue. Whatever the Watchers had done to my friends I will fix. No matter what. Even if I had to sacrifice my life I will save then.
The group began to glide down to the ground, glancing suspiciously at the surrounding trees as we went. I looked around as I landed, the scent of charred wood filling my nostrils. I hadn't been here since it had been burnt. Only one building survived, which happened to be the arena Pearl and Sausage had built. Everything else had been reduced to rubble.
"Grian?" I called. No response.
"Let's spread out" Impulse suggested, "we'll cover more ground faster that way".
"Good idea" I agreed, "but stay in pairs please and meet back here in an hour". Katherine and Shelby went off together, while Impulse and Pearl went in another direction. This left me with Cleo.
"You okay?" She glanced at me.
"I'm alright" I sighed, "it's quite stressful I'll admit but I'm doing okay"
"Have you been getting enough sleep?" Cleo asked, "and no, two hours is not enough".
"Most nights yes" I replied, "I'm not getting anymore than five or six though".
"We'll that's better than normal I guess" Cleo gave my shoulder a slappy pat, "if you need anything just talk to me".
"I will" I smiled, "thanks".
"Come on" Cleo turned away, "let's go find Grian".