Timeline: July 2013
Word Count ~ 3.7k (HOW-)
TW: Blood, death
It took Xisuma a long time to understand Hypno. He adjusted to the group quite quickly, but seemed hesitant to talk to or spend time with anyone. He'd eventually figured out that the teenager possessed some kind of magic, but again, Hypno seemed scared to use it around anyone else. It wasn't Xisuma's place to assume anything, but he knew magic users were often frowned upon in the Overworld. Perhaps Hypno's behaviour was a repercussion of this attitude toward magic usage, or perhaps something else entirely.
However, despite how little he spoke to anyone, Hypno had remarked once or twice on the slowly growing community they had, and similarly to Joe, had asked Xisuma if he'd ever considered starting a server. Now that it had been mentioned to him twice, Xisuma decided that it was perhaps a good idea to investigate it further, and that's exactly what he did. Having very limited resources, his best source of information was Joe, who explained the whole affair to him as he continued to work on his set of armour.
"Servers are kind of like miniature worlds, parallel but not attached to the one we're currently on. You need administrative powers to create one, but I've been told those are easy enough to obtain, as long as you have a clean record and valid reasons to need them."
Xisuma frowned, setting down the piece of metal he'd been working on. "But I don't have any sort of record here Joe, I've only been in the Overworld for less than a year." He pointed out, and Joe also frowned.
"There's the catch, I'm not entirely sure if they'd let you have one if you're not from the Overworld." They admitted. "I know False won't be eligible because she technically has a criminal record, BDubs can't qualify because he's legally counted as a mob and not a person, TFC is supposed to be dead, Hypno is too young, and I don't have the best of relationships with the higher Admins."
"So what you're telling me is that the system is rigged against us." Xisuma groaned. "I was told things would be better in this Dimension, I didn't think that would only apply to certain groups of people."
"Well, someone's gonna have to change things, and maybe that someone could be you." Joe suggested. "I've said it before and I'll say it again Xisuma, what you and False are doing here has a far bigger impact than you think it does. You're helping people that the Admins won't, and I really admire you for it."
Suddenly feeling a little more confident after Joe's words, Xisuma smiled. "You know what, I think you're right. Even if I might not be eligible to be an Admin, there's no harm in trying, is there?"
"You mean you'd want to go to the Admins' HQ? You know the closest one is at least a 2 week journey, right?" Joe pointed out. Xisuma seemed to hesitate for a moment, glancing out across the valley. Sure, it was nothing more than a few buildings shoved awkwardly together, but it was such a special place to him. Creating a server would inevitably mean leaving it all behind to be overrun and claimed by time and nature.
Xisuma was about to tell Joe that maybe this wouldn't be worth it, that perhaps they could just stay here and live their lives safely and happily. But then he thought of his old home, how he thought he'd been safe and happy there, and what had ended up happening. The Watchers knew he was alive, and they knew he'd witnessed their destruction. They were still chasing him, and if he wanted any hope of keeping these people safe, he'd need to get to a safe place where those monsters couldn't find them.
Xisuma didn't care if it took days, weeks, or even months. As long as those killers were out there, he wouldn't rest until he knew those he loved were finally safe from them. He looked back over at Joe, who'd noticed the change in his attitude and was grinning proudly. "Let the others know that they should gather their things. Whether those Admins like it or not, I'm going to give this group the home we deserve."
If you wait long enough, you'll get used to anything. Even a monster, on the other side of the door, starts to feel normal. Fear dies down, life moves on, and with each passing generation, history itself becomes nothing but an old story. When nobody is left to remind us of the dangers that lie just beyond the wall, nobody is left to fend them off either.
Until they come back.
All Mumbo could remember was the blood. Everyone around him covered in blood, his own blood dripping down his neck, and a bloody hand being forced against his mouth only seconds before he was overwhelmed by sudden pain and rendered unconscious. It had taken several days for him to realise that he wasn't alive anymore, but hadn't yet been claimed by death. He was trapped alone in a strange state of subconsciousness, knowing that he was still alive, but not in the way he used to be.
He'd been dragged to his feet the moment he could open his eyes, taken away from the ashy ruins of his home by those who had burnt it to the ground. Under the cover of night they'd left him deep inside of the forest, to the parts so far and hidden that not even the moonlight pierced the canopy. Mumbo had been too weak to protest, as if any life and energy had been drained from him. And, even if he didn't know it at the time, that was exactly what had happened to him.
But it was far from the only thing that had happened to him. It didn't take Mumbo long to realise that he'd changed, turned into something inhuman without his knowledge or consent. His heartbeat had been replaced by nothing but silence, all thoughts in his head corrupted by an unfamiliar hunger, one he'd never experienced before but soon yearned to satisfy. Yet all he could do was lie where he'd been left, as the hours passed by and his inanition drove him to the brink of madness.
When the night came again, the attackers returned, and things had only gotten worse from there onwards. They'd at least spared him an explanation, even if Mumbo wished what they'd told him wasn't true. They were vampires, undead creatures that feasted on the living and had the power to convert other humanoids into one of their own. And, according to their leader, they'd chosen to convert Mumbo.
Many things had confused and scared Mumbo that day, but the one that he couldn't stop thinking about even now was why they'd chosen to keep him. What had these monsters seen in him, a vulnerable 17 year old who hadn't even gotten the chance to leave school yet, that made them think to take him as one of their own? To not give him the simple and easy fate of death, but instead to trap him between life and death for the rest of his days until the latter finally came to claim him.
The others had considered him lucky, saying that as a human-born vampire, he had certain advantages to his state of undeath that 'true vampires' didn't. He wasn't cursed with immortality, the sun would hurt him but not turn him to ash, and food could still give him sustenance as opposed to surviving purely on blood.
That was another particularly terrifying aspect to vampirism, the blood drinking. Mumbo had managed to delay it for the first week or two, until normal food could no longer satisfy his hunger and he was forced to feed. He still couldn't bring himself to attack humans like the others did, but slowly got used to feeding on animals, even if it still disgusted him. However, the others became increasingly impatient with his refusal to join them on hunts, and eventually decided that perhaps Mumbo wasn't worth keeping after all.
"We need to talk, human."
The vampires refused to use his name, instead opting to refer to him as 'human'. It was ironically cruel, a reminder that he was anything but human nowadays, yet Mumbo had come to learn that he was lucky to receive their acknowledgement in the first place. Although in this particular instance, Mumbo would have preferred to stay out of sight and out of mind.
"For two months, all you've been is a leech to this coven." The leader sighed. "You don't leave the woods at night, you don't hunt and you don't provide for anyone else. We were hoping you'd be of use to us, but you're nothing but a weak, incompetent child who's afraid of the dark."
"Well, in my defence, I never offered or agreed to join this coven." Mumbo pointed out, trying not to let the quiver in his voice appear too obvious. "You were the ones who chose me, and if I'm not as competent as you hoped... forgive me for coming off as rude, but I hardly think that's my fault."
"Maybe it isn't, but we don't care. You're dead weight, and we're getting quite tired of dragging you behind us. If you can't prove that you're worth keeping, we'll cut you off without hesitation. Come with us on tomorrow night's hunt, and show us why we should let you live."
"Live?" Mumbo repeated. "Couldn't you just let me go, and then I'll never have to bother you again?"
"That's the thing, human, we don't like to leave witnesses. Either you're with us, or you're with the dead."
"B-but I can't kill someone, that's immoral!" Mumbo argued. "I watched you burn my home and family to the ground, I can't do the same! I refuse to be like you- you..."
Mumbo hesitated, the word 'monster' never actually leaving his mouth. After all, he was a monster now too, by his own definition. Noticing his dismay, the leader shrugged. "Whether you like it or not, you're one of us. You're no better or worse than anyone else in this coven, and the sooner you come to accept that, the bet-"
"No." Mumbo interrupted. "You're wrong. You're not monsters because you're inhuman... you're monsters because you kill innocent people just to satisfy your own bloodlust. You're monsters because you're selfish murderers who took away everything I knew and loved for your benefit. I will never be like you, and I will never join you, regardless of how much you threaten me."
The coven leader raised his eyebrows, surprised by the young vampire's sudden will to rebel. "You know Mumbo, it's really quite a shame. I thought I saw something great in you, and perhaps I was right. I'll give you one last chance to prove yourself, even if you refuse to join those who spared your life."
"What could you possibly want from me this time?"
"Oh, it's quite simple. Run."
Mumbo's eyes went wide. If he was no longer a part of the coven, he was fair game, and he knew none of the others would hesitate to slit his throat now that they were allowed to. He didn't even hesitate, immediately sprinting into the dark and hoping that he might be fortunate enough to outrun them. However, when Mumbo heard paws on the ground behind him and the howl of a wolf, he knew he'd lost.
Shapeshifting, one of the many aspects of vampirism that he had yet to master. Each vampire could shapeshift into one of three animals; a bat, a wolf, and a third animal that was entirely unique to each person. Mumbo didn't even know what his unique animal was yet, let alone how to turn into it, and it hardly seemed fair that the others were using their powers against a fledgling vampire who couldn't even control his own powers yet.
However, as the only one in the coven who'd been turned into a vampire and not born one, Mumbo had an advantage against the others. He could go into the sun mostly unharmed, and they couldn't. Dawn was only minutes away, and if he could outlast them for long enough, the sunlight would protect him from their wrath. That said, he could hear the wolves behind him getting closer, and began to question whether or not he could even last a few more seconds with them behind him.
'Shapeshifting powers would really come in handy right now, wouldn't they?' Mumbo thought to himself, as he began to grow weary. As he kept hoping and wishing that maybe the universe would pity him and give him some unexpected twist of luck, that's when he felt it. It was almost like a little spark, lying just in front of him, ready to be reached out to. Suddenly optimistic, Mumbo chased it, running even faster as if it was a physical thing that could grab in the palm of his hand. He could feel it growing closer, and just as the wolves' fur brushed against his heels, he finally reached it.
Mumbo was thrown forwards, tiny black paws hitting the ground. For a moment he was unsure what had happened, but as he kept running, it clicked. He certainly wasn't a bat or a wolf, so what was he? A cat? A raccoon? Something small, black and furry anyway. Mumbo glanced over his shoulder, the wolves now far behind him, and spotted a large, bushy tail that seemingly belonged to him. A black fox, surprising yet oddly fitting for his special animal.
The vampires had no hope of catching him now, and as the trees thinned out in the forest's outskirts, Mumbo could see the sun on the horizon. Eagerly he jumped towards it, landing in its light on a dirt path outside. Sure, the sunlight felt uncomfortable, and would start to hurt him soon if he didn't get out of it soon, but Mumbo was safe. Free from those murderers, who couldn't hurt him anymore now that he was under the sun's protection.
The wolves finally caught up, forced to remain in the shadowy forest. Switching back to his humanoid form, Mumbo smirked, feeling very proud of himself and deciding to be as obnoxious as possible about it. "I told you I'll never be like you!" He called happily, the happiest he'd been since they'd taken him. "Goodbye forever!"
With that, Mumbo shifted back into the black fox, running along the road to look for a sheltered place where he'd be safe. The whole time he laughed to himself, surprised he'd had the confidence to speak to the others like that. He never had to be hurt by them ever again, and even if that left him without a home, he was just happy to be free of the coven and the pain they'd caused him.
However, not so far away was another group of people, who weren't exactly having the best of times. Xisuma had tried to keep the others in an upbeat mood, but after two weeks of walking in the hopes of obtaining something that would be impossible to get, some were finding it hard to remain optimistic.
Hypno cursed under his breath as he tripped over yet another tree root, which was blatantly protruding from the muddy path. He was growing increasingly impatient on this seemingly pointless journey, and BDubs's incessant questions weren't helping matters. The Glare, who was perched atop TFC's shoulders, wouldn't stop asking Hypno about whatever happened to come to his mind, but Hypno finally reached his limit when the question of his magic was brought up.
"So... you can do magic, right?" BDubs asked, Hypno pretending not to listen. "What kind of magic is it? Can you control plants? Can you make ice or fire? Or what if you can fly and explode things? That would be cool." He remarked, before his eyes went wide with excitement. "Wait... can you kill people?"
"That's none of your business!" Hypno snapped, the tree roots around him pulling free of the ground and pointing their sharp ends at BDubs. The others turned around, looking quite alarmed as TFC took a cautious step back. Feeling guilty, Hypno sighed, the roots retreating back into the ground. "Sorry, I really don't like talking about it."
"That's okay, you don't need to talk about it if you don't want to." Xisuma explained, walking back over to Hypno. "And if you ever want to talk about it, we'll listen! But for now, we won't ask you about anything you're not comfortable answering, right BDubs?"
"Right, I won't ask you any more questions." BDubs agreed, before squinting at something in the distance. "Although I do feel a need to ask why there's a fox on the road."
Xisuma followed his gaze, also noticing the little animal curled up by the side of the dirt path. He'd never seen a fox in person before, and had thought that they were supposed to be red and not black, but was intrigued nonetheless. However, as soon as he tried to lay a hand on the fox, its eyes opened wide, their pale pink irises taking Xisuma by surprise.
The fox panicked, and quicker than any of them could blink, it changed into an equally panicked young man. He had the same pale irises and dark hair as the fox, but the rest of his appearance was quite dishevelled, almost unsurprising considering they'd found him on the side of a road. Still, his apparent exhaustion and tattered clothing concerned Xisuma, and he held out his hand. "Hey, are you alright?"
The stranger seemed surprised by his immediate friendliness, and took his hand, standing up. "Well... yes, but also no. Thank you for asking though, I'll be on my way-"
"Wait, if you're not alright, is there anything we can do to help?" Xisuma offered. "We're currently going to the Admin Headquarters in the closest city, you could stick with us if you're headed the same way!"
Xisuma's arm was suddenly grabbed, and he was pulled over towards False and the others. "Xisuma, maybe don't tell a vampire where we're going and ask if he'd like to come too." She whispered, keeping an eye on the stranger. Xisuma frowned.
"What's a vampire?"
"Night dwelling monsters." She warned. "They can shapeshift, they drink blood instead of eating, and they're known to attack in groups, especially when they come across travellers near their homes. If there's one out in the open here, there's probably more nearby."
"...Or he's just by himself, and he doesn't actually want to hurt anyone." Xisuma suggested, shrugging. "I don't see the harm in offering him help, he seems polite."
"You know what, fine." False sighed. "You have a way with strangers that I will never understand, but things always seem to work out when I don't intervene. I'll just have you know that if he tries to do anything, I have my sword with me."
Xisuma smiled, glad she was still as protective as ever, but also happy that she was letting him try to talk to this 'vampire'. He seemed to be genuinely lost, tired and hungry, and even if he didn't want Xisuma's help, it was worth offering anyway. The vampire, meanwhile, was awkwardly trying not to listen to their conversation, but looked up when Xisuma turned around to face him again.
"Sorry about that! As I was saying, we'd be more than happy to escort you to the city, if you wouldn't mind the company. I'm Xisuma, this is Joe, Hypno, TFC, False and BDubs. If there's any other way we can help you, please just ask and we'll try our best."
The vampire stared at his outstretched hand for a second, before slowly taking and shaking it. "Nice to meet you, I'm Mumbo. And um... this may seem like an odd question, but you wouldn't happen to have an umbrella, would you?"
"Yes, actually!" Joe exclaimed, holding out a simple white parasol that Mumbo could have sworn wasn't there seconds ago. The others seemed equally confused, all staring at them for a moment.
"Where the heck did that come from...?" TFC asked, and Joe grinned.
"Funny you should ask! I found it on a beach one morning after a storm, someone must have lost it to the wind the prior day and-"
"No no no, I mean where did you... I... nevermind." TFC sighed, as Mumbo took the parasol. It was very frilly and lacey, and evidently had belonged to a young girl quite a long time ago, but he was already getting the idea that maybe Joe's oddness wasn't to be questioned. Besides, it kept the sun off of him, and he wasn't going to complain about that.
"So... You're going to the city, right?" He asked. "I hope you won't mind, but I'd love to come with you. I don't really have anyone or anywhere else to go to, so the offer really means a lot."
"Of course you can come with us!" Xisuma replied. "We're actually on our way to try and start a server! The idea is that we'd make a home for people like us who don't have a home, so it's interesting that you mentioned not having anywhere to go yourself... Maybe if we can start the server after all, you could join us too! We're always happy to accept new people who..."
As Xisuma kept on talking, Mumbo couldn't help but smile. He'd known these people for a few minutes at most, yet this was already the most kindness he'd been shown in months. Maybe he would stay with this group after all, if they truly wanted him. He'd missed the feeling of a family so badly, and even if he could never replace what he'd lost, finding his new family would be a good start to a new and better life.
These chapters are getting so long, I'm sorry
- Xan