Timeline: July 2013
Word Count ~ 4.5k (send help)
Xisuma was beginning to wonder whether or not this entire idea had been a mistake. As soon as the group had laid eyes on the enormous, palace-esque building that the Higher Admins called their home, it soon came to their attention that none of them belonged in a place like this.
Nearly everyone stared at them, almost in disgust, as if the unkempt, rugged group might leave a stain on the pristine floors of smooth white stone. It didn't help matters that a giant glass dome lay in place of the ceiling, forcing Mumbo to keep his scrappy looking parasol up whilst indoors, as if the group didn't look strange enough already.
They had been referred to an Admin, who'd run into some kind of issue that hadn't been disclosed to them, and had then had them referred to a Higher Admin, who encountered the same issue and in turn referred them to a multitude of different officials who also had no idea what to do. Yet somehow, all of this ended with them in the hands of an overworked young Admin by the name of Gnembon.
Apparently the problem had been large enough to warrant the attention of several Higher Admins and other officials, but for some reason, it was considered unimportant enough to be carelessly offloaded onto a seemingly exhausted Admin. Xisuma still didn't even know what the problem was, but judging by the alarm on Gnembon's face when he'd read through their individual files, it certainly wasn't going to be simple.
And that's how they'd ended up here, crammed together on a bench outside of Gnembon's equally crammed office, awaiting an explanation as to why a 15 minute background check had taken 4 and a half hours.
Xisuma wasn't even aware of how much his leg was bouncing, until TFC placed a gentle hand on his knee and glanced over at him. "Calm down, okay? You'll do yourself more harm than good if you keep shaking like that."
"I can't help it, I'm worried that I might have ruined our chance before we even got it." Xisuma admitted. "I don't even know what's going on."
"So how is it your fault if you don't know what's happening?" BDubs asked. "Until we actually know what the problem is, I don't think you should try and blame yourself."
Xisuma was about to try and argue, but was interrupted by the door opening beside him. He glanced up at Gnembon, who appeared to be almost amused by something. "You guys can come in now, I have good news and bad news."
Xisuma's heart sank a little as the group awkwardly shuffled into the tiny office that was covered in scattered papers and hastily scribbled notes. On the computer screen, Xisuma could see that he had records of each of them that had seemingly been thoroughly searched and investigated. The chaotic state of the room perfectly reflected their current situation; an absolute mess in the middle of an otherwise perfect place.
"Before we get into the technical side of things, you should have been given an explanation of the problems a very long time ago. Essentially, the 7 of you have one of the most complicated legal situations we've ever seen, and nobody knows where that places you in terms of qualifying for server administration."
"Complicated?" Xisuma repeated. "How so?"
"Well, the main issue arose when we found out that Xisuma, Hypno, False, Mumbo and TFC have been missing and were assumed dead. Things got worse when we found out that Hypno and Mumbo are minors with no legal guardians, BDubs is counted as a mob and is therefore impossible to do a background check on, Joe just doesn't exist in our databases and keeps crashing the system whenever we try to scan them... and if you don't mind, Xisuma, there's something I'd like to talk to you about in private."
Every single person in the room seemed to be staring at Xisuma, who slowly nodded. If this was what he thought it was, which he hoped it wasn't but knew that it almost certainly would be, this wasn't going to be an easy conversation. He turned to the other 6, smiling at them despite his sudden anxiousness. "You guys will be okay on your own, right? There's a nice garden outside, maybe you can wait there until I come back."
BDubs eagerly jumped up, running out the door and down the hallway without having to be asked twice. He'd shown a very strong interest in the botanical garden outside, as he hadn't been adapting very well to the lack of plants and trees in the huge city. TFC sighed, laughing a little as he followed the excited Glare, and the others simply shrugged and went along with him.
False hesitated for a moment, carefully keeping an eye on Gnembon and glancing at Xisuma as if to ask if he was okay. Xisuma nodded. "Go on, you and I both know that BDubs will get lost if he goes too far by himself." He told her, False seemingly happy enough with that response to leave with the others. As soon as he heard the door click shut behind him, Xisuma sighed, no longer able to force a smile.
"If what's written here is correct, Xisuma, I think you may already know what it is I want to talk to you about." Gnembon pointed out. "I know this may be difficult for you to talk about, but the Higher Admins have been investigating the massacre in the End for over a year, and we still know next to nothing about it. You seem to be the only living witness, and if you could tell us anything, the information would be invaluable."
Xisuma was beginning to understand what Gnembon was implying. He and his friends evidently had very slim chances at being allowed to administer their own server, but perhaps Xisuma would be put in the Higher Admins' favour if he were to assist them. "I saw the perpetrators, and I know who they are. But the problem is... they saw me too. And I know they want me dead."
"And I assume this is why you want the safety of your own server?" Gnembon questioned, Xisuma nodding. "I'm trying my best to help you achieve that, but until then I can guarantee you that you'll remain safe as long as you're with-"
"It's not that simple." Xisuma interrupted. "I don't think you know who it is you're dealing with, and even if I were to tell you, I'm worried that you won't believe me."
"Xisuma, it's my job to take every word you say as the truth until otherwise is proven." Gnembon promised. "No matter how improbable it might seem, I will believe it."
"It was the Watchers." Xisuma answered. Gnembon's eyes went wide, and he was about to speak, but Xisuma continued. "You might think that they're not real, but I assure you, they are. I watched them burn my home with magic I'd never seen and kill my family with weapons I didn't know existed. They know I'm alive, and they're looking for me."
Gnembon had gone incredibly quiet, deep in thought. He looked up at Xisuma again, no clear expression on his face, but fear was in his eyes. "I have to admit, although this wasn't what I was anticipating, part of me isn't surprised."
"So you believe that they exist?"
"I know they do." Gnembon confirmed. "They've been sending us messages, cryptic puzzles that hint at their existence but little else. The incident last April is only more proof that they're real, and that they're far more dangerous than anyone here expected them to be. And if they truly intend on coming back to kill you, we could work this in your favour and request that as a valuable witness to an ongoing investigation, you obtain administrative powers for your own protection."
"That would actually work?" Xisuma asked, surprised. "That was why I came here, I was hoping to start a server to keep our group safe from them."
"If I can talk the other Admins into it, then yes, it could work. Everything you've told me will already have put you in their favour, and they might overlook the aforementioned issues if they're eager enough to keep you safe. We should go immediately and try to talk to them about it, the sooner we can get you trained and on a whitelisted world, the better."
Meanwhile, as this all took place, the rest of the group had remained patiently outside, hoping Xisuma would be back sooner rather than later. At least BDubs was happy, surrounded by a sea of flowers and ferns that Hypno occasionally animated with his magic to keep him entertained.
"I can never figure out how old BDubs is supposed to be." Hypno remarked. "He looks a lot older than he acts sometimes."
"BDubs ages quite differently from other species." TFC told him. "When Glares are away from light, their bodies just... stop. They're left in a coma of sorts, and while they're like that, they don't age. This means that he'll live roughly twice as long as humans, so even if he looks like an adult, he's only really the equivalent of being 10 or 11 years old."
"That's not to say that he can't be mature when he needs to." False pointed out. "He's still capable of acting like an adult, but sometimes he can be a little childish and that's perfectly okay."
As TFC, False and Hypno kept talking, Joe noticed something in the distance. In such a bustling city, it surprised them to see such a quiet and secluded area not too far from where they were sitting. A high, stone wall topped with black spikes prevented them from seeing any further, but something about its mystery and ominosity intrigued them to get closer.
"Guys?" They called, interrupting the others. "Do you see that place over there...?"
"You mean the graveyard?" Mumbo asked, glancing over to where Joe had pointed. "I've been there once or twice before, it's not a nice place, I've heard it's allegedly haunted." He admitted. And although the idea of a haunted graveyard would scare most people away, it instead made Joe far more curious.
"Cool, I'm going to go and look at it." They decided, standing up. They had begun to walk away when Mumbo grabbed their wrist, wincing a little as he reached into the sunlight.
"Wait! You realise something being haunted is a bad thing, right...? Like, ghosts and stuff?" He pointed out, and Joe nodded.
"That's exactly why I want to go!" They explained. "I've never had the privilege of meeting a ghost before, and if anything, this feels like a perfect opportunity to do precisely that."
Mumbo let go of Joe, not sure how to convince them to stay put and not wanting to keep his hand in the sunlight long enough to do so. They seemed more than capable of defending themself, and even if the graveyard was haunted like Mumbo had heard, he wouldn't put it past Joe of all people to make friends with the undead. After all, he was one of the undead nowadays, and they'd certainly done a good job at making friends with him.
Names always had such a unique and interesting story behind them. Some people were named after their predecessors and some after great heroes, some had their names chosen the day they came into the world and some chose their own names.
Cleo happened to fall into that last category of people, although her name had no special meaning whatsoever. They'd simply picked it from a grave they'd found, having liked the way it sounded when they said it and the way it looked when it was written. She knew no other name, as hard as she tried to remember the one that used to be hers, she was just Cleo.
They had spent a long time choosing it, walking through rows of graves as they searched for one they liked. Sometimes she wondered who the people buried beneath the headstones were, what they were like and if they'd want to be her friends if they too were left to roam the graveyard. Maybe one of the graves might have even been Cleo's.
They had thought about leaving, and had even come close to it once or twice. But the reminder of the way she'd be treated beyond the walls of her home scared her into retreating back to where she knew she was safe. They'd learnt to stay near the older graves, the ones that had been there for so long that nobody was left to visit them. At night she'd occasionally wander toward the newer ones, reading their headstones and learning the names of those who had passed.
Sometimes they wondered if one of the others would wake up and join them too, but none of them ever did. The years passed by, Cleo's only perception of time being whatever date had been written on the newest headstone, yet nobody had ever come to join her. Until one day in July of 2013, when someone did.
The reason Cleo stayed near the old graves was because no living people ever came near them. They thought they were safe there, away from the people who'd called them a monster in the past, but evidently they were wrong. The stranger that arrived that day was unlike anyone she'd ever seen before, as most people came to the graveyard dressed only in black, whilst they were dressed in a bright rainbow of colours. Even though everything about them was so jarring and unfamiliar, Cleo wanted to get closer.
She'd stayed up in the safety of a tree for a while, simply watching as the stranger wandered around and inspected the graves. They almost seemed to be looking for something, perhaps a specific person, yet at the same time even they didn't seem to know what it was they were searching for. Eventually they stopped in front of one specific headstone, one of the oldest in the graveyard and one that Cleo knew well.
"Lady Cleo of the New Grimlands." They read aloud. "Died December 18th, 1845, aged 19 years and 4 months..."
As if it wasn't unnerving enough that the stranger just happened to discover the grave Cleo had chosen her name from, they then looked directly at her with eyes that seemed to be a different colour every time she looked at them, and smiled. "Is that you?"
Despite the sudden alarm and panic they felt, Cleo remained still and quiet, unsure how the stranger had spotted them or what to do now that they had. Slowly and cautiously, she climbed down from the tree, approaching the colourful stranger. They didn't run or scream, or react in any other way that suggested a zombie was right in front of them. It was almost nice, being able to get this close to another person without being driven back to the shadows from which Cleo had come.
"You're alive." Cleo pointed out, tilting their head as if to observe every detail of the person before them. "Usually alive-people run away from me... why aren't you doing the same?"
"I don't see why running away would be necessary." The living person shrugged. "You don't seem particularly keen on hurting me, threatening me or being any sort of problem in general, so why should I be scared?"
Cleo frowned, almost a little offended by their words. She was perfectly capable of defending herself, and even though she had no intentions of hurting this strange yet surprisingly kind stranger, she didn't want them to think that she was weak. "Well, I could if I wanted to."
"But that's the thing, you don't."
This stranger was far more unnerving than they had any right to be, and Cleo didn't like that whatsoever. "How do you know all of this? Are you a monster too?" They questioned, keeping their distance.
"Ah, so you are Cleo?" The person asked, ignoring the prior question.
"Not quite... my name is Cleo, that much was correct, but that's not my grave."
"Well in that case Cleo, my name is Joe Hills, and it's a pleasure to meet you." Joe replied, shaking her hand. "And forgive me for intruding, I was simply out for an afternoon walk and happened to stumble across you."
"An afternoon walk in a graveyard? With dead people...?"
"Precisely."
This 'Joe Hills' was certainly unlike anyone Cleo had met before, and perhaps it wasn't a bad thing. They clearly seemed far nicer and more accepting of her than any other living people she'd run into, and their blatant strangeness was actually quite amusing. "Fair enough, I've often found myself doing the exact same thing."
"Do you live here?" Joe asked, rainbow eyes filled with sudden intrigue. Cleo couldn't help but feel like this was leading into another question, and whether it was a good or bad one they couldn't yet determine.
"Yes, I do, actually." Cleo replied. "I'm not sure if you've noticed yet, but considering that I'm dead, there's not many other places I could live."
"Funny you should mention that!" Joe exclaimed. "You see Cleo, I happen to be here for more than an afternoon walk. Myself and six others are currently trying to start a server for those who don't exactly have a proper home. I'm unsure whether or not I'm allowed to offer you a place there, but it seems that we're currently taking in whoever wants to join us, and I thought I'd at least mention it."
Cleo raised her eyebrows. This all felt quite coincidental... too coincidental. They'd spent over a century and a half in solitude, with nowhere to go and nobody to turn to, then one day a stranger just happens to run into her, correctly guesses an alarming amount of information about her, and immediately offers the answer to all of her problems provided she follow them off to who knows where.
However, as skeptical as Cleo was, there was also a chance that this was a legitimate and purely coincidental offer. Perhaps if they got to meet the other six people that Joe had described, they might decide to accept the offer despite how admittedly sketchy it had first sounded. That said, meeting these other people likely meant leaving the safety of the graveyard, and Cleo couldn't be certain that they would be as accepting as Joe.
"My friends are wonderful people, I assure you." Joe promised, holding out their hand. Hesitantly Cleo took it. "You don't have to join us if you don't want to, I understand that this kind of offer from a stranger is quite a big one to accept, but the least I can do is offer you a place with us."
"You know what, I've got nothing to lose in a place like this." Cleo sighed, looking around the desolate area she called her home. "I might as well take a chance with you lot... You alone have already been far nicer to me than anyone else I've met."
Joe beamed, and attempted to shake their hand, but instead pulled it loose from the rest of their body. Cleo froze, and likely would have blushed if there was any blood left in her veins, awkwardly taking the lower half of her arm back and snapping it into place. "Can we pretend that didn't happen?"
"I don't know, personally I found it pretty amusing." Joe shrugged, leading them back toward the gates of the graveyard. "Does that even hurt? I mean, if you're dead I'm sure your nerves are relatively dysfunctional, which makes me wonder... Can you feel anything at all?"
Joe just kept asking questions, not once stopping to think about manners or civility or anything like that. And something about that made Cleo laugh, perhaps it was just the pure chaos that Joe seemed to radiate at all times. And the more the two talked, the more Cleo began to realise that maybe this wasn't a mistake at all.
"Joe, there you are!"
Cleo stayed hidden behind Joe as they approached their friends, hoping that perhaps nobody would notice her until Joe got the chance to introduce her. The young man who had called Joe was holding a small device in his hands, and Cleo took note of the heavy grey mask that covered the lower half of his face, potentially some sort of air filter. Strange.
"I was just telling the others what happened!" He explained. "Gnembon and I had to talk to a lot of people, and it took ages to get through the rest of the background checks, but we've been granted server administration under emergency circumstances!"
"What's the emergency?"
"It...It's a long story." The masked man admitted. "Maybe I'll explain it another day. Anyway, the point is that we can actually start the server immediately! I'll still need to go through Admin training for a few months, but because it's an emergency situation, I can start the server first and train while I'm running it. I'll need to travel between the main world and the server a lot, but I think it'll be a great opportunity to meet new people while I'm there."
"Well, I'm glad you're open to the idea of new members, because look who I found!" Joe exclaimed, stepping aside to reveal Cleo to the others. Many of their eyes went wide with surprise, but nobody screamed or ran away. A good start. "This is Cleo, she's a zombie, and I met them in the graveyard over there."
"Oh!" The masked man exclaimed, stepping a little closer. "Well, hello Cleo, my name is Xisuma. I'm sure Joe has already explained what we plan to do on our server, and if you need a home we'd be more than happy to include you in it."
A man in a suit, with a name tag pinned to his chest that read 'Gnembon', frowned. "How many of you people are there...?"
"As many as there needs to be." A woman with short blonde hair retorted. "It's nice to meet you Cleo, I'm False, and this is Mumbo, TFC, BDubs and Hypno."
Cleo smiled as several people waved and greeted her. Most of them seemed inhuman in their own ways, which was kind of comforting. At least they wouldn't feel like an outcast in a group like this, especially one that had already been so kind to her.
"Well, at least we haven't made the whitelist yet." Gnembon shrugged, taking the little device from Xisuma and pulling up a blue screen from seemingly nowhere. "Speaking of which, this feels like a brilliant time to do so. So we have Xisuma, False, BDubs, TFC, Joe, Hypno, Mumbo and now Cleo, is that all?"
"Actually, can we add one more person?" Xisuma requested. Gnembon nodded, stepping aside to let him add the last name. Neither Cleo nor any of the others could see who it was, but the sad smile in Xisuma's eyes told them that it was someone very dear to him. "Thank you."
"Alright, I just need to run through a few more things before I can let you go." Gnembon announced. "Admins can create up to one new world per year unless in an emergency, if you die on the server you'll respawn, if you die on the Main World you'll respawn on a server you're whitelisted on as a failsafe, certain items can't be brought onto or off of the server, you'll have access to your own End and Nether dimensions within the server, there's no default protection against hostile mobs like we have on the Main World, and the rest will be addressed in Xisuma's training."
Then Gnembon hesitated, glancing over at Xisuma. "Wait, you never chose a name for your server. We can't create it without one."
Xisuma froze, having evidently not thought of this beforehand. He glanced at the others, most of whom seemed equally lost for ideas. "Uh... I don't think we thought this one through. Any suggestions?"
"Hermitcraft!" Hypno blurted, before he even had the chance to think his answer through. All eyes turned toward him, and he went a little red in the face. "You know... Because we're like Hermits? And it kinda sounds like 'hermit crab'...?"
Xisuma smiled brightly. "I love it, Hypno, that's a brilliant name. Is everyone else okay with the name Hermitcraft?" He asked, each of the others nodding or replying in agreement. "Are you okay with it too Cleo?"
Cleo's eyes went wide. "Oh... I get a say in this too?"
"Of course you do, you're one of us now!" BDubs pointed out.
"Well in that case, Hermitcraft is a lovely name." Cleo laughed.
Gnembon grinned, entering the name on the blue screen, before pressing a button in the middle of the panel. A portal made of pure obsidian materialised before them, its centre glowing a bright cyan blue, mesmerising anyone who laid eyes on it. Xisuma beamed proudly, knowing how hard they'd all fought to get this far and trying not to cry. It also meant a lot to him that he'd been able to whitelist Ezra, even if his twin may not be with him anymore, it gave Xisuma hope that someday they'd meet again.
"Alright Hermits!" Gnembon exclaimed, handing the device back to Xisuma. "Congratulations on starting your very own server, I wish you the best of luck in your future and I hope to see you very soon."
"Thank you Gnembon, for everything you've done." Xisuma told him. "I hope you can help other people as much as you've helped us, the world could really need more Admins like you." Then he turned back to the group, or the Hermits, as they now seemed to be calling themselves. "I guess that means it's time for us to go then, isn't it? There's a whole world out there waiting for us."
Without hesitation, the Hermits grabbed each other by the hands, all excitedly running through the portal into a new life of joy and opportunity. Xisuma couldn't be prouder of them, from False who had been by his side from the very beginning, to Cleo who joined them only minutes ago but was already beloved and treated as one of their own.
And even if they didn't know it yet, this was only the beginning of the strange little family and their legacy. There was much more to come and many more friends to find, and even great dangers lurking just around the corner. But for now, none of those things mattered, for after all they'd been through, the Hermits had finally found hope.
Fun fact, this chapter was only 1.2k words long when I started writing today. I have written 3.3k words in less than 8 hours and I am definitely not okay after doing so! :D
- Xan