"That's weird." Grian nodded and groaned. "It's not all bad shortie. You're still taller than some of the other hermits." Scar clapped his hand on Grian's shoulder.
"Says the Vex." Grian pointed out before looking at the time. "I have to meet up with Ren and Doc. Then I gotta build that expansion." He said and left rather quickly since he was late.
<Grian> Sorry Doc, Ren. Just woke up! OMW
He messaged as he ran off. Another few hours and he should be able to fly there. Before he had left, Scar had pointed out that his wings were full-sized but still getting his new feathers. It made him confused but also made him realize that he had to change into a shirt that was made for them so they wouldn't be cramped. He'd have to talk to Xisuma again to see why it was happening even quicker than it was supposed to. He hoped it wasn't because of his time in the academy. Watcher stuff is weird man.
<Renthedog> it's good mate were still here
<Docm77> ren came here late so all good
<Renthedog> no! I was on time
Grian looked at the messages and laughed. "Why do I feel like a parent here..." He murmured to himself and continued running. He skidded into Doc's shop, sliding due to the slippery quartz floor and falling on his face.
Doc and Ren jumped and went over to him as he started getting off the ground with the small amount of dignity he had left. "Hey man, you oh-" Ren asked and tilted his head. "Hm?" Grian looked at him before getting to his feet, his wings fluffing up for a bit until they folded against his back.
"Oh. Yeah. You're one of the people I didn't tell or who haven't figured it out." He said once he realized Ren was staring at his wings.
"Pearl updated me about that, but didn't Xisuma say a few days? Not two?" Doc asked after explaining to Ren the whole avian thing. "Yeah. That's what he said but it was happening a lot faster after that than I woke up this morning and well..." Grian lifted a claw and flexed his talons.
"You are a special type, Grian." Ren chuckled and stretched. "Yeah...and I don't know why." Grian nodded and they started heading out.
"So today we gotta finish up the whole path around here and then gather things for other shops to finish the quest False gave us right?" Ren asked, looking at the letter False had given him.
"Yeah, then we can get our netherite stuff back. Little sneak." Doc nodded and stretched. "I mean we did...kinda made a series of pranks into one that made her lose all 54 levels." Grian chided, shrugging and rubbing his eyes. "Yeah...we did do that." Ren nodded and huffed before they started getting ready. They decided to get a checklist of everything the other hermits sold in their shops and split up to gather them. Grian's eyes hurt with reading what he wrote over and over to make sure he had everything that he needed to collect. He didn't want to read another thing for a while.
After cross-referencing with the others he was the first to fly off. "Grian's okay right?" Ren asked, watching him go. "He seems better than before. More upbeat like normal, he just uhm... he seems a bit off. Something is going through our pesky bird's mind." Doc shrugged and they split up.
Grian, Ren, and Doc had an inventory full of shulkers full of all of the blocks the shops needed when they met back up really late in the night. They created the largest chest monster in the centre of the shopping district before just plopping on the ground groaning in exhaustion.
"That sucked!" Grian yawned and rubbed his eyes. His body felt heavy.
"Yeah, man." Ren agreed and leaned against one of the boxes looking at them.
"I'm so tired. I don't want to move." Doc chuckled before hitting the tab button. "Guys were the only ones here."
Grian opened the menu when Doc said that and blinked. "We are....should we just...head to bed or get this done?"
No one answered and he sat up looking around. He saw the two asleep and he smiled tiredly. "We'll do this tomorrow." he laid back down and closed his eyes going to sleep. The shopping district was lit up, so monsters barely spawned there. So he expected a somewhat peaceful night's sleep. Expected.
His dream started as the last one did. The day of his exile. But it was before it. The horrid silence of the cell he was trapped in, the incredibly dim light in the room that hurt his eyes, the cold sting of metal shackles and the constant drips of water in the corner. He looked around, trying to pull the shackles off of his wrists and his neck. It seemed all too real. He wanted to scream, but he just couldn't. His throat was raw. He could taste blood every time he went to swallow. The more he tugged at his binds, the more they stun. The silence was deafening. He could hear his heartbeat in his ears. He was scared, but he was also enraged.
He was a loyal Watcher for how long and now he was here. He was sitting in this blasted cell, alone. He had already been here for less than a week. Confined in this small space. Alone.
His head shot up looking towards the bars, hearing the creaking of a door and the heavy footsteps of someone walking towards him. The anger dissipated, replaced with disabling terror when he realized what it meant.
"ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ᓵ𝙹⚍リᓵ╎ꖎ ⍑ᔑᓭ ᒲᔑ↸ᒷ ᔑ ↸ᒷᓵ╎ᓭ╎𝙹リ, ̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ᔑ." They said as they opened the cell door.
That's when he woke up. It was still dark, but he could tell he wasn't outside. He wasn't at the shopping district or his own home. He groaned at a splitting headache and slowly sat up. He squinted in the dark and realized he was in Ren's base. Why am I in his room? He thought, the confusion dulling his panic only a little. He shuffled out of bed and wrapped the blanket around him, before heading out hearing murmuring.
He followed it downstairs groggily, having to put a hand on the wall to keep him steady. He saw Ren, Doc, Pearl, Scar and Xisuma sitting near the fireplace. He could catch some of the conversations. "I'm really concerned. What's happening to him..." Pearl murmured quietly. "I don't know but we're all worried about him." Doc nodded.
"G-Guys....?" He was hesitant to speak, the sensation of his raw throat still fresh. Fading quickly. His friends jumped hearing him and Pearl ran to him pulling him into a hug. "You're shaking...." She sniffled and pulled him to the couch.
"What's going on? Why was I in your room Ren?" He looked at them, sitting on his hands to stop them from shaking more. "What happened?"
"We ended up all falling asleep out in the shopping district centre and in the morning I tried waking you up. You were freezing cold and wouldn't stir. Nothing. I woke Ren up and we kept trying until we told these guys." Doc motioned to Scar and Pearl.
"Then they got me online and I knew something was wrong. You were like that when you were at my place so I had them bring you here. Grian you were asleep for two days...." Xisuma leaned against the hearth. Grian just stared at them for several moments. He couldn't believe it.
"No..what? I....two days?" He blinked and shook his head. "Two days?! what....but.....what..."
His head was spinning. Calm down Grian. Take a breath... He told himself and looked at Xisuma. He pulled the blanket closer to him and closed his eyes, shaking his head. "I was....out? Just like that for two days?"
"Yeah...but we should talk about this later. You need time to process this and just some time to relax. No errands or chores for a bit, okay?" Doc sat beside Ren. He nodded and inhaled shakily looking at Pearl and Scar, really concerned.
It was quiet for a moment before Scar looked at Pearl. "We'll take him to his base. You guys get some sleep. We'll stay with him." He said as Pearl got up and grabbed Grian's things from upstairs. Grian had no time to say anything. The three looked at him, Pearl, and Scar as they dragged him away out of the building.
Once outside, the cold air brought Grian back to his senses and looked at the two. "What is going on?" He asked, stretching. He needed the fresh air more than he expected. "G, you're going to explain to me what's going on, before I have Scar do it," Pearl said with such a motherly tone it caused Scar and himself to visibly shudder.
He sighed, rubbing his eyes and nodded. "But first. Let's get some food in you and just all collect our thoughts." She said and they flew off. The fly helped Grian calm his thoughts and collect his nerves. The three hermits got to his base, and he started laughing when a death message popped up in chat.
GoodTimeWithScar experienced kinetic energy
<GoodTimeWithScar> lag!
He landed laughing as he started collecting Scar's things, putting them in a chest. "He flew right in your door trying to open it at the same time," Pearl said with a snort. "What am I going to do with him..?" Grian huffed and went inside and waited with her. After a while, when they started forgetting Scar was on his way back, he slammed open the door and Pearl squeaked.
"Sorry. I got lost." Scar smiled and they sat in the dining room and ate. Grian's hair is still damp from the shower he took, so he occasionally had to wipe the water off his nose. "So, why was I whisked here?" He asked, looking at mainly Pearl. "Because when everyone was explaining what you went through, I noticed something weird and Scar apparently noticed the same thing." She said shifting.
"Noticed what?" Scar said before thinking for a moment. "Wait yeah. Grian, you had a very faint purple tint to your eyes. I think it's because of the nightmares you've been having."
Grian nodded silently for a moment until he sighed and told Pearl what she wanted to know. What really happened? His life in the academy. Going into further depth of his exile, the dreams attached to them. "I don't know why they're starting now. It's been years since I was there."
"What if they're looking for you?" Pearl asked, scratching the back of her neck thinking.
"Why would they even look for you? They exiled you, years ago. But that doesn't explain why you are getting nightmares of your exile now." Scar thought aloud.
"I don't know. I was...well....before I was exiled I was one of the top students, I was one of the top-ranked when I graduated from the academy. Then when they thought I was going to...turn against them they chucked me into a cell, then was exiled." Grian said softly. "I don't even know what made them think I would turn against them. I didn't really have any reason to."
He got looks from his friends and he shifted. "It was...uhm....the way of Watchers is very strict. From the language, you're only allowed to speak, to what you go through as the classes go on. Watchers basically....your mind gets fogged up. They meld your mind and perspective. I didn't realize I was basically corrupted by them. They were the only thing I believed in. Then spending time in that cell made me realize we weren't what we seemed to be. I was angry that they lied to me my entire time there."
He looked back at them from the table and he sighed softly. "So maybe they aren't done with you since you used to be what? Most trusted? That makes no sense." Pearl rubbed her temples. "What even made them think you would betray your entire life?"
"Someone must have had it out for me. I hate to think about it."
"G. What happens if they find you?" Scar fidgeted with his hands.
"I don't know. It depends on why they are looking for me. If they're looking for me just to make me a pawn again then that's a problem for everyone. If they are looking for me so they could kill me, that's a problem for me."
Grian then got up and grabbed a book and quill, starting to write their theories. They did this for hours. Well into the night and late morning going through many cups of coffee. They wanted answers. They looked through the pages before there was a lot of knocking on his door.
They jolted and Grian tripped on his talons opening the door. "Hey tango, Bdubs. What's going on?"
"First off, where the heck have you been?" Bdubs asked, throwing his hands in the air.
"Second, You three know the game event is about to start right? Zed made us go get you guys. Did you turn the chat off?" Tango asked, looking at the littering of mugs, papers, and dozens of pens, quills, and inkwells. "What in the world is going on here?"
Grian looked around at the mess blinking, "Uhm...just brainstorming." Scar said quickly getting up, and closing the book he was hunched over.
"Yeah. We got really bored and were trying to figure out something to do." Pearl said, rubbing her face, smearing ink on her face. She wasn't the only one with ink on her face. Grian and Scar did too. Tango and Bdubs decided to not say anything about it though.
"O-okay then. Well, let's go. Gem and Jevin are waiting for their teammates." Bdubs stammered confused and stifling laughter as the group took off. Grian looked around as they flew to the game district. There were a lot of games in the area. "Where is everyone?" He asked, squinting.
"They were by the gates you made. Now I'm not sure." Tango shrugged and dove down.