*crawls out of author prison* Well hello again
It's certainly been awhile, hasn't it.
Oh, I guess you're right. It's only been a MONTH or so.
This one actually isn't very long. But it's horrible. Rather boring and pointless.
Ugh.
First up, checking in with da VILLAINS, YAY
Just kidding I kinda don't like writing them ._.
And um...
I'm honestly really sorry I took so long to write this. I had a LOT of trouble with this chapter. But I should be back on track next week. It wasn't that I was having trouble with writing in general; it was just this stupid chapter.
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Overnight, the world changed. There was now much, much more void than land. The remaining patches of ground were islands, just splintered pieces of ground floating above the void. And they never stopped shaking. A constant earthquake jostled every last known world, sending the last safe havens crashing into oblivion.
Except one.
One building still stood whole, at least as whole as it was before the whole crevice debacle. Which is to say, not entirely whole at all.
Alright, I'll stop beating around the bush. You know I'm talking about the Fallen Castle.
At the front of the castle, the crevice was small. It was a similar size to the original gap that the Order had seen. But it widened drastically, spreading out rapidly into the catastrophic canyon that was overtaking the worlds.
The Fallen Castle was an intimidating sight even in its state of disrepair, so it might've been quite the fortress in years before. The outer ramparts were crumbling to piles of loose stones and fallen timbers, but the innermost walls remained fairly strong. Strong enough, at least, to ward off any would-be investigators.
Whatever was in that castle, it was the kind of powerful that no one should want to come in contact with. And yet our three antagonists were right there, in the meager safe space before the castle.
The young Author stared up at the castle in awe, shuddering slightly as the feeling of unnatural wrongness swept over him. "Whoa...do you FEEL that?! What the heck is in there?"
Jacky also seemed unnerved, but Salem remained as stonily calm as ever. "Something unbelievably dangerous and powerful. Something we need."
A few heartbeats of silence. Then...
"Are we going in there?"
"No. Not yet, at least. The relic won't do us any good until the rest of the Authors are dead. The only problem for us is, they'll be able to use it without having to end your or eachother's lives. They will only need it to unlock their individual powers and to put the worlds back together. But you want to gain the powers that they will have lost by death, so we need to bide our time."
"So what are we supposed to do? Do we go out and kill them? Or do we wait until they come here, then fight them?" The boy asked. He didn't appear to be very comfortable with either of the plans.
"No. The battle will be here, as it was always destined to be. But we can't defend this place on our own. We need an army." Salem said. The boy frowned. "Where the hell are we supposed to get a-wait. You're not serious."
Jacky grinned her trademark disturbing smile. "Oh yes, we are."
The boy backed up from her slightly. "B-but I've never tried to create anything close to an army. I mean, I've messed around with my power quite a bit, but not like what you're asking."
Salem gave him a calculating glance. "Your power is not locked like the other Authors. You know that you are not the first person in your family to have this ability."
"Well yes, but-"
"Author. Pay attention. You have the capability to do this. You know what your power can do."
"Kind of. Wait, why isn't my power locked like theirs is?" The young Author asked, tipping his head to the side.
"Because one of your ancestors, an Author from several hundred years ago, came in contact with this object we are trying to keep the other Authors away from. It unlocked your ancestor's power, and as the power was genetically passed on through your family, it remained unlocked."
The boy nodded slowly in understanding. "So then how are the object and the powers connected? Did...was this thing used to create the Author powers?"
"No, definitely not. The powers existed long before we created it. Back when the worlds were new...it was dark, dangerous times, full of monsters and war. Many people had some form of power, and most of them abused it. We didn't want the worlds to be cursed with this kind of darkness, so we created the item to take most of these powers. It was a very difficult decision to make, but I believe it was the right one." Salem said, her brown eyes clouding over as she became lost in the past.
"But not all of the magical abilities were taken. There are a few worlds in the Portal Network that still have people who can use those forces. Certain types of power were spared, and one of those was the Author powers."
"What is this 'object', anyway? You seem determined to gloss over what it actually is."
Salem pressed her lips together in a hesitant look. She obviously wasn't going to say anything more on the matter, so Jacky filled in for her.
"We don't exactly know."
The young Author did a double take, staring at her with eyes of pure shock. "You don't KNOW?! I thought you created it!"
"We did! We used the Command Block to form all of the lose power in the worlds into an object, but we never saw what it became. We can't get near it. No mortal can, except for someone supposed to have those powers." Jacky looked more serious than she ever had in her life.
The boy stared at her, wide-eyed. A billion thoughts swirled through his mind, and it took him a moment to decide on which question to ask. "So...you're mortal? Despite making the entire Portal Network, you can still be killed by ordinary things?"
Salem let out a surprised bark of laughter. "OH yes. We're not going to die of age anytime soon, but a classic arrow to the heart would finish us off."
"Hence the reason why we need some assistance if we're going to triumph against the other Authors and the Order." Jacky added.
The boy let out a long breath, head still spinning from the new information that rewrote what he knew about the Portal Network. "Okay. What kind of 'army' am I to be building?"
Salem bit her lip, trying to think of how to phrase her request. "Imagine an iron golem, except larger, bulkier, and made of stone. It should be able to use weapons, but still be able to take someone out with brute force. Give that a shot."
The boy visualized the golem-like figure in his mind, then waved his hand at a heap of stone near the edge of the crevice, nothing more than rubble and debris.
The discarded rocks seemed to spring to life, shaping into the hulking form that Salem had described. Broad, stony shoulders and long arms. Large yet nimble hands. A wide torso and thick legs, ready for battle. It was hunched over slightly, but even so, Salem's head was barely even with its shoulder.
"Impressive." Jacky admitted. "Can you control it?"
The young Author squinted at the stone golem, trying to convince himself that he could do this. He had done this many times before, just with smaller, more insignificant things.
With an odd cracking sound, the golem shrugged its thick shoulders, taking a step forward. The two Old Builders gasped and stepped back. The stone figure stretched its arms, as though the Author was testing out how it could move.
Salem gave it a critical look. "Excellent job. It's much larger than the average golem, and it looks like it would fare very well in a fight."
The boy rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "It's technically not a golem. Golems can act on their own free will, and I have to give this one commands for it to do anything. So really, it's a dullion."
The tall woman nodded, only paying him partial attention. "Right, right. Dullion. Well whatever you call it, it should still do the job nicely."
"What do you mean by 'giving it commands'?" Jacky asked.
"I have to mentally order it to act if I want it to do anything. So in a fight, I could order it to kill someone, and it would, without any hesitation." He explained.
"Is it possible for anyone else to give them commands? Could you make them take orders from another person, even if they didn't have powers?" Salem asked shrewdly. The boy gave her a sharp look. "No, get rid of that thought right now. I'm the only one who has control over this."
"So what would happen to it if someone were to kill you?" Salem pressed. "Are you planning to?" the Author shot back.
Salem shook her head. "Of course not; I want this alliance to stand. But we're going to be in a rather nasty battle, and death must always be a known threat on our radar. You know what's at stake."
The young Author shrugged. "The dullion would just turn back into a stone heap, because really, that's what it still is. It's not alive, just temporarily animated."
Jacky continued inspecting the dullion. "Can you control multiple of these at once?"
"Probably...? I've done it before, but with smaller objects. It might take me a bit to adjust to using larger forms."
"Well, you've got all the time in the worlds. Until the other Authors get here, that is." Jacky informed him.
Salem crossed her arms. "Your power has a lot of potential, yet it seems like you've hardly used it. Why haven't you exercised it very much?"
The boy shrugged, looking down at the ground. "I just...sometimes don't like to use it. It made me feel too powerful when I was younger, and I didn't like it. I also didn't want other people to know that I had this power, since there's so few other magical sources in this world. My family, especially. They probably would've exploited my power for their own good, so I kept it hidden from them."
"So why this sudden interest in power now? If you felt too powerful with just your own ability, why are you now willing to go after the other Author's powers?" Salem asked slyly. She was quietly testing his loyalties, trying to see if he had ulterior motives.
"Because now I can do something with them. The other Authors will waste their powers, I know that for sure. If they can't use them to their full potential, then they should be given to someone who will. I know that we're technically the villains here, but I feel like I'm doing the right thing."
Salem smirked. "Exactly what I was hoping to hear."
The young Author cleared his throat. "And I want you to know, that if you're even thinking of double-crossing me, I will not hesitate to hurt, imprison, or even kill you. Now you've seen some of what I can do; I promise that if this deal goes sour, I will do everything in my ability to stop you from getting away with it." As he said this, his stone dullion made a motion with its hands as though it was cracking it's knuckles.
"Threat received." Salem told him with a raised eyebrow. Jacky scowled. "And I hope you know that this goes both ways. If for any reason you decide and manage to betray us, it won't end well for you, no matter how many animated bodyguards you might have. And that's not a warning, it's a promise." The blonde woman hissed
The Author shook his head. "I have no reason to double-cross you. It seems like I will have to eventually betray someone, but it won't be you."
"Well, at least we have that agreement." Jacky said, still looking vaguely suspicious of him. Salem made a dismissive motion with her hand. "Jacky, relax. Author, you might as well get started on the rest of the dullions. We don't know how long it will be until the Authors and the Order reunite."
"Right." The young Author nodded, then began building more of the creatures that could end the Author's quest forever.
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If you hate Jacky and Salem less now, don't.
They're not good. They're still very evil, okay?
Yes, they stopped all the crazy powers from destroying the worlds a thousandish years ago, but that was when the Old Builders were still together, and not insane killers.
And yes, the Author boy is pretty much an animus.
And YES, a dullion is an actual thing. Read Fablehaven.
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As could be guessed, the first thing everyone noticed when they woke up was Jasmine's disappearance. They all knew what had happened, of course, but that didn't make it any less painful.
The second thing they noticed was that the crevice was nearly upon them. The thin cracks were already reaching under their platform, continuing to splinter the world to pieces.
"Ack! We need to get out of here!" Minty yelped, bolting to her feet.
"What's the point. The crevice is everywhere; we're just prolonging our fates." Maya grumbled, crossing her arms.
"HOW MANY TIMES ARE WE GOING TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION?! Giving up is not an option! Not now, not ever!" Kendall exploded.
Logan rubbed his forehead, trying to block out his friends' arguing. His dreams from the previous night hadn't been pleasant, to say the least. He wasn't sure if they were actually dreams at all or visions of a possible future.
They had to be dreams. The horrible, nightmarish scenes that he had seen couldn't become real. There were monsters unlike any that existed in the known worlds. Each of the Author's deaths had played out in horrific detail, full of blood and fire and screams. Including his own.
He didn't think the image of his own death would ever be erased from his mind. Falling into the void, his body limp as he surrendered to gravity. As though he was falling willingly.
But that couldn't be. They had lost too much to give up now. Or had they lost too much to keep on going? What was the difference? There was a thin line between success and failure, but where did that line fall for them?
Logan shook his head and glanced up. His eyes fell on Rush, who's death was possibly the most horrific of all of them. She currently stood by Kendall's side, looking fed up with the fighting and generally too tired to function. But Logan could only see her as he had in the 'dream', running through flames as her body turned to char and ash. And of course that image brought forth others, death scenes replaying in his mind.
It's not real, it's not real, it's not real. They're all okay. They're still alive, and so are you. He tried to convince himself that it was true, that it was just a dream, that everyone was fine.
But they weren't. Jasmine was-
NO. He willed himself to not think of the events that had transpired the night before. Not about their conversation, not about her passing, not about ANYTHING.
He was shaken out of his thoughts by Jesse's shout. "Hey, HEY. ALL OF YOU STOP TALKING. We do not have time for this, and I think we can all agree that it's getting old. We've got to find the others today. If we don't, we're going to have to continue to this 'Fallen Castle' on our own."
Rush sighed and reached up to adjust her cat-ear headband. "I hate to force this on ya, but have you seen anything about where they are, Logan?"
The brown-haired boy stood up. "No. I had a lot of...visions last night, but it didn't tell me anything current. At least, it better not've been current."
"Why...not?" Aranna asked hesitantly. "I don't wanna talk about it. And let's be honest, you wouldn't want to hear about it." he replied.
"Suit yourself. Aaron, what about you? Anything to report?" Minty asked hopefully.
I can't talk right now; I'm sorry Minty. Came his instant reply, sounding slightly rushed. Minty frowned. "Okay..."
Meanwhile, Logan was reaching out with his power, trying to see a bit of the future that didn't involve everyone dying. It wasn't easy, seeing as most of the visible futures were choked with death and destruction. But he pushed past the worst of the shadows, concentrating hard.
He was almost physically knocked back by a terrifying vision of a collapsing mountain range. The extreme hills folded in on themselves as the crevice ripped through them. And in the dust of the crumbling mountains...were a very familiar group of people.
Logan let out a shout of triumph. "In the mountains! I saw all of them near a large mountain range."
Jesse frowned. "That can't be right. The mountains would be incredibly dangerous right now, with all the loose gravel and whatnot. Crossing those hills with the crevice right behind you would practically be suicide."
"I know what I saw. Lukas, Petra, Olivia, Myst, Athena, Megan, and most of the other Authors! Plus a few people that I don't recognize...I wonder when they showed up." Logan shook his head. It was difficult to focus on the visions and talk aloud at the same time.
"Then we have to find them! Come on!" Minty exclaimed.
"But...danger. I don't really feel like getting killed today." Kendall objected quietly.
"Because it'll be so much safer to stay here." Maya said with an exaggerated eyeroll.
"I suggest we get moving, if you really do want to find your friends. The end of the world waits for no one." Soren called from the ground in a nonchalant voice.
Everyone froze. Jesse gave him a calculating glance, unsure of whether to snap at him or listen to his advice. After a moment, she conceded. "Fine, fine. Let's get a move on."
It took them a while to get to the mountains, but they managed the journey through dogged perseverance. Jesse recognized some of their surroundings here and there, but landmarks didn't do them much good when the entire world never stopped changing.
The mountains were all but gone. They had essentially been flattened, torn to shreds by the crevice. There were a few standing peaks in the distance, but they were visibly shaking and crumbling, even from that far away.
Maya planted her hands on her hips. "Okay, where are they?"
Logan ran a hand through his hair, making it stand up even more than before. "I don't know where they are exactly. I saw them here, I know it."
"HELLO? ANYONE OUT THERE?" Jesse hollered. Kendall also added her voice to the attempt. "HEY! HELLO! ANYONE? Goddammit."
Their shouts echoed across the dead mountains, reverberating through the sides of the crevice.
"CREAMY SPINACH!" Aranna shouted. Most of the others gave her a 'what the heck' look, and Kendall burst out laughing.
"Well that's one way to get someone's attention." The blue-eyed girl remarked.
Jesse rolled her eyes, but she found that she didn't quite have the energy to reprimand them. Maya however, was a very different story. "I don't know why you two-"
"Shh!" Rush ordered. "What makes you think you can-" Maya snapped.
"Shut up! I heard something!" She had her hand cupped behind her ear, listening closely. A few seconds later, a shout could be heard to the east of where they were. Jesse stared in the direction of the noise. "That was Olivia! I'd recognize her voice anywhere!"
She took off running, with the others following behind. In a matter of moments, a group of familiar faces came into view.
The rest of the Authors and three-fifths of the Order.
"Holy crap, you guys are ALIVE! You're here! Ohmygod." Minty shouted upon seeing the others.
"Yeah, all..geez, how many are there now?" Kendall wondered aloud.
"I don't even know. We picked up a few friends along the way." Dawson said, trying to calm Ginger. The auburn dog was barking and leaping all over the place, trying to greet the newcomers.
"JESSE! You're okay; I can't believe it!" Olivia shouted, wrapping her friend in a bear hug. Jesse laughed and hugged her back. Lukas and Petra joined in, all of them crushing Jesse in an enormous, relieved group hug.
"Ow, guys, don't smash me." Jesse protested, squirming out of the embrace. She turned away from them, noticing Stampy, Stacy, and Dan nearby.
"Wait a minute, how did you guys wind up here?" she asked. Petra huffed. "You know. Damn crevice has been crushing all the worlds. Theirs was apparently almost as bad as this one is now. Oh and by the way, they also know Dawson, who now has a dog."
Jesse blinked at her. "What?" "Hey, be glad you got at least some warning! Imagine how I felt!" Petra grumped. The black-haired girl waved her hand dismissively, then went over to talk to the three YouTubers.
Meanwhile, the Authors of Nether group were introducing their newer companions. "This is Cindy and Lila. They helped us through the Nether, and they're the reason we know about the Fallen Castle at all." Dawson said waving her hand towards the two girls.
"Also Aisho, who we literally just met yesterday. She learned the hard way about how intense this whole adventure is." Athena added.
"Aisho? Surely it can't-" Ellegaard wondered, looking over at the dark-haired young woman.
"It is." Gabriel said, sounding surprised. Aisho gave them both a cool glance. "Hmph. Figures we would run into each other now."
"Yes. Should've known you would show up in the middle of this." Ellegaard muttered, sounding slightly awkward.
Dawson's eyes flicked between Aisho and the old Order, trying to make sense of the strange interaction. "You guys...know each other?"
Aisho nodded curtly. "I've known them for years. Gabriel's my half-brother, as a matter of fact." Her head suddenly snapped up as she put the pieces together. "Wait, if you two are here, does that mean..."
"Again, yes. Soren is with us." Ellegaard admitted catching onto her train of thought.
"Wait a minute. You're serious? SOREN?" Petra asked, a hostile edge creeping into her voice. She scanned the group until her eyes landed on the leader of the original Order, who looked very much like he wanted to disappear.
"Right. He 'saved' us from Jacky and Salem." Maya said in a snide tone. Lukas glanced over at her curiously. "What happened?"
"Not relevant." Petra snapped, still glaring down Soren. "We have a LOT of questions for you, you pathetic spineless coward."
"Those pretty much mean the same thing." Lukas pointed out quietly. Petra shot him an annoyed glance, but didn't press the matter. "Why did we find your books scattered through the Portal Network? Why did you abandon us during the Witherstorm fight? Where the hell have you been, and what made you choose to grace us with your presence now?"
Petra was a bit taller than him and looked absolutely furious, which should have been terrifying. Instead Soren looked rather calm, despite seeming slightly annoyed. "I'm sure you have better things to do than pointlessly threaten me."
The redhead growled, and Lukas put his hand on her shoulder, drawing her attention away from vengeance. "Petra, we can worry about him later. Right now we should catch up with the Authors and everyone else, to see what the heck happened while we were split up."
"...Fine." Petra grumbled hesitantly.
Soren's reappearance was a surprise, but the largest shock by far was when the rest of Star's group realized that she was there.
Rush turned sickly white and pointed at Star, looking like she'd seen a ghost. Which in a way, she thought she had. "YOU-HOW ARE YOU-WHAT IN THE-" the blue-haired girl shrieked.
Kendall practically tackled her friend, wrapping her in a relieved hug. "You're ALIVE! I can't believe it! Wait, HOW are you alive?"
Star stumbled backwards, trying to hold onto her balance. "Ha, yeah, I'm okay. And you're kinda screaming in my ear."
"Oh. Whoops, sorry." Kendall guiltily backed away. Aranna also hugged Star. "For the love of sheep, how did you survive that?! We saw you fall into the void! We were so sure..."
Rush was looking slightly more hostile. "What happened. You...you...you were dead. You fell into the VOID, we saw you fall! And now we find you HERE?! HOW DID-"
Star held up her hands submissively. "Listen, Rush, I have no idea. It might have something to do with my power, or it might've just been dumb luck. I don't know."
Rush crossed her arms. "You fell into the goddamn void. That was NOT 'dumb luck.'."
"So you're honestly trying to tell us that you don't know how you survived something that was literally fatal?" Logan snapped.
"Yes! I went unconscious as I fell, and I landed on a ledge near the bottom. Marilan thought it might have something to do with my...power."
"Oh? And how would that work?" Rush asked, not letting up the impossibility of the situation. Star frowned, looking hurt. "Look, none of us know how to use our powers. Please don't be mad at me for something that I have no way of knowing."
Rush sighed, and pulled Star into a hug. "I'm not mad, ya paperwad. I'm just confused. And I'm honestly so, so relieved that you're okay."
"Same. I thought...I thought...Jeez, I wasn't sure what to think. I knew that you just couldn't be dead, but I was still worried out of my mind." Athena admitted.
"Me too! I think ridiculous amounts of worrying kinda becomes normal at the end of the world." Minty added.
"Oh, well that makes me feel a lot better. I've been internally freaking out this whole time, and I'm not even one of you who's expected to save the world." Lila said.
The newly reunited group chatted for a while, comparing experiences. Most of them skirted around the subject of death, but it seemed that it was unavoidable.
"I think it might be time to discuss something a little darker, if you know what I mean." Jesse announced during a lull in the talking.
"This might sound kind of horrible, but we need to know who's...not with us anymore." The black-haired warrior said. "And we need firm proof that someone's actually gone." She glanced over at Star as she said this, remembering the brown-haired girl's false death.
There was silence for a moment. No one wanted to discuss their fallen companions.
"Gill and Ruby were the first to go." Minty said stiffly.
"Aiden got slashed by that godamn Salem, and then Jasmine only last night. She was poisoned by Jacky's Wither daggers, and it finally overtook her." Kendall added in a soft tone. Petra shook her head sadly. "Poor girl. I know how awful being Withered is. Not a nice way to go."
"Marilan told us that Axel is gone, as well as Wolfe. She was crushed by falling gravel." Olivia informed them in a quavering voice. Axel's death hit her harder than she cared to admit.
Everyone was silent for several long moments. So many lost lives in so little time.
"Jesus Christ." Rush muttered. "This is awful."
"Wolfe? R-really?" Aranna sniffled. Olivia nodded mutely.
"Seven gone already...how is this happening?!" Star took a deep breath through her streaming tears.
Maya's head suddenly snapped up as she realized who else was missing. "Wait a mo-what about Marilan? She had to be with you!" she said, on the edge on panic.
Megan and Athena exchanged a panicked what-do-we-do sort of look. Unfortunately for them, Maya noticed it.
"No. No. You're not serious. Not Lyn. Please just tell me she's still alive!"
"Maya, I'm sorry. She...she died with Wolfe. She just didn't make it out in time." Megan said softly, leaving off the part where Marilan hadn't tried to escape.
Maya backed away, feeling completely numb. One thought kept circling around her head, an echo of hopeless denial.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
This wasn't happening.
She repeated the phrase in her mind, trying to believe it. But she couldn't deny the truth for very long.
This was really happening.
She turned and ran away from the group as the pain hit her. She didn't know where she was trying to go, so long as she got away from the unbearable truth.
Gill, Aiden, and now Marilan. The three people who she cared for the most. The three that knew her the best. The three that had already survived so much. The three that had lost their lives in vain.
Agony flooded over her, sweeping away all other emotion. Maya let her grief out with a scream, shouting her despair to the sky. She sank to the ground, still screaming.
This wasn't happening.
Memories flickered through her mind in bits and pieces. Marilan's carefree laugh and shining eyes. Aiden's confident smile and endless ideas. Gill...everything about Gill. His shy, awkward personality that everyone discredited. The way he would stop at nothing to help his friends. His neverending supply of unfunny jokes.
She screamed until her breath ran out, a wordless, heart-wrenching sound of pure heartbreak. Maya sat with her head bent low, sobbing uncontrollably.
This wasn't happening.
Petra nudged Lukas with her shoulder. "Go talk to her. You know her the best."
The blonde boy shook his head. "No, you should. It'll mean more coming from you."
"What?! No! You're the one who actually knows how to comfort people! And we've never gotten along." Petra protested. Lukas grinned. "Exactly. You can help her, and maybe even repair your rivalry."
Petra grumbled for a moment, but hesitantly walked over and sat next to Maya, who had her knees up to her chest and her face buried in her arms. Her sobs had been reduced to quiet sniffles.
"Hey, um...I'm sorry. I know how it feels to lose someone so close to you." The redhead mentally kicked herself, realizing that what she had said was practically the opposite of what Maya would want to hear.
"No you don't. Go away." The other girl mumbled. "You didn't even know any of them!"
"Actually, I did." Petra corrected. Maya lifted her head slightly, giving the taller girl a befuddled look.
"Marilan and I were friends when we were little kids. I didn't recognize her when she first showed up with you, because I hadn't seen her in almost ten years. I might know who she was, but now it's too late."
Aranna plopped down on the other side of her. "I may not have personally known them, but I did know Wolfe for most of her life. We're from the same world, and we lived near each other. She was one of the only kids our age who didn't judge me only by my weirdness." she said, smiling sadly at the memory.
"Pretty much the same with me and Ruby." Rush added, also approaching the huddle. "Most of us have now lost someone to this crevice. It's still heartbreaking, whether we were close or not."
Maya managed a weak smile. "Well, at least some of you get it. But I still...with all three of them gone, what else do I have to lose? What do I still have to gain? I was never meant to be a hero, especially not on my own."
Aranna leaned over, wrapping her arms around the older girl and pulling her into a hug. "None of us are. Most of us Authors have absolutely no idea why we're even here. But that's how I know it's a real adventure."
Maya laughed quietly. "Ha, I guess you're right. Thanks, I think I needed that reminder."
"So...you think you're gonna be okay?" Petra asked awkwardly.
"I don't know. This isn't something you can just get over. I...I need a little time alone. It physically hurts inside, you know? Like there's an actual pain my heart. But seriously...thank you." She sighed, glancing over at Petra. "I know we've never really seen eye-to-eye, but it means a lot that you would come talk to me."
The redhead gave her a small, shy, smile. "It's no problem. I wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anyone"
Rush, Aranna, and Petra walked back to the others, leaving Maya where she sat. Grieving, but not destroyed.
"Didn't I say it had to be you?" Lukas gave Petra a pointed look. "Alright, fine, you were right.
The rest of the reuniteds were mostly quiet, still processing the news of their deceased companions.
"I'm sorry we left you guys behind. We shouldn't have gone bolting into the Nether like that." Megan muttered to Minty and Jesse.
"Well if you hadn't, you wouldn't have met...what were their names? Cindy and Lila. You wouldn't have been on your way to the castle and we wouldn't've found you." Minty said, trying to stay optimistic.
"But Wolfe and Marilan would still be alive." Megan argued half-heartedly.
"But then we wouldn't have found Soren." Minty pointed out.
"Speaking of which..." Jesse grumbled, glancing over at where the former Old Builder was standing. He was hanging back a little ways from everyone else as though he was hoping the others would forget his presence. But no such luck.
"Look, Soren. You refused to reveal everything yesterday because 'it was a long story and you didn't like telling it'. You wanted to wait until we were all together again. And now we are, at least everyone who's...still okay."
The orange-haired man still looked hesitant. "I don't know. The futures are so unstable at this point..."
Logan snorted. "Don't talk to me about 'unstable futures'. You haven't been haunted by visions of EVERYONE DYING."
"Still. None of us have any surefire way of knowing how this will turn out, and telling too much could throw everything off."
"Soren, you're talking in riddles." Ellegaard scolded.
"What else are you waiting for? Half of us to DIE?! You won't have to wait long, at the rate we've been going at!" Myst snapped.
"If you're really on our side with this, we need to know everything. Anything about this whole thing that might've been kept secret in the past, we need to know now."
"Okay, okay. You're right; it is time to tell the full story." Soren sighed. Petra gave him an evil look. "We mean it this time, Soren. The FULL. STORY. No more of your avoiding secrets!"
"Yes, the complete truth. It's about time we came clean about this." The orange-haired man said.
He turned to face the gathered heroes, Authors, and extras, ready to reveal the history at last.
------------------------------------------
Over a dozen dullions stood in an unorganized row. They were the same basic shape as the first one, but had little variations here and there. Most of them were a mix of cobblestone and dirt, though a few had other materials like smooth stone, wood, or mossy cobblestone.
The boy Author was still shaping more dullions, and Jacky and Salem were scouting around the area before the castle, prepping everything for the battle they knew would come. Salem came over to check the progress of the dullions, only to find a rather unexpected sight.
The Author stood frozen unnaturally still. His previously brown eyes had turned glassy white, and he stared into nothingness, whispering a string of unintelligible words.
Salem gasped loudly, taken aback by the disturbing sight. Jacky also hurried over.
"What the hell?! How...why...what's happening to him?!"
"I don't know." Salem snapped, jostling his shoulder in an attempt to shake him out of his trance. "It must have something to do with those accursed powers. I swear, sometimes I think we should've terminated those along with the rest of them."
After a few more moments of the two Old Builders freaking out, the Author's stiff stance relaxed, and he shut his eyes. When he re-opened them, they were his normal dark brown. He immediately caught on to their startled expressions and jumped to conclusions.
"Oh. I had a Narrator attack, didn't I?"
"A WHAT?!" Jacky blustered, thoroughly confused. The young Author winced. "Sorry, that's just what I call it. I haven't met any other Authors, so I don't know what they refer to those visions as."
Salem was giving him an extremely annoyed, tell-me-what-the-hell-is-going-on-before-I-murder-you look. "What are you talking about."
"Weeeell, it's kinda hard to explain? It's one of the 'added bonuses' of the Author powers, like telepathy with fellow Authors. I get these visons, but not of the future. They come when something important is happening in the storyline. It's better if I have paper, because then I can write it down and look at it again later. Otherwise I can't remember anything that I said."
"Hmm. Why call it narrator attacks, of all things?" Salem asked suspiciously. "Isn't the 'narrator' just an imaginary thing?"
"Yeah, but that's why I call them narrator attacks. Us Authors are the narrators. It's our job to create the story and shape the worlds. Plus, that particular title makes me laugh."
Jacky and Salem exchanged a look. They didn't fully understand, but they were glad to have some form of explanation.
"The weird thing is...that's only ever happened when something really momentous is happening. Like a death, or when the Authors first met. I wonder what it was this time." The boy mused.
Jacky shrugged, not particularly caring about powers that didn't make much sense to her.
Salem however, had gone white. "No...he wouldn't dare." She murmured, followed by a whispered string of curses.
The other two gaped at her, not comprehending. "Who wouldn't dare to what?" the Author asked.
Salem gave them both a wild-eyed stare. "Soren...he's going to tell them."
"Tell them what...?" Jacky asked nervously.
"Everything."
------------------------
I TOLD you that was an awful chapter. Ugh.
Yes, I'm finally revealing a ton of poorly constructed secrets.
All y'all theorizers *cough cough* Jas and Kendall... *cough* Go nuts, because most of you are wrong and there's only like three chapters left.
*thinks* Right? Thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen, with no epilogue? Oh dammit... *searches for notebook*
But seriously, I LOVE seeing you guys go crazy with theories. It is downright HILARIOUS, because there's a bunch of conflicting ideas and only few of them are close. And I probably shouldn't find that so funny, but I do.
I'm going to TRY to update on time next week, but I've said that almost every week haven't I?
And sometimes I have to rethink my dialogue because I'm not sure which characters can swear and which ones shouldn't. Some of them I know, but there's a few that I'm just like 'eeehhh...I think I'll change that.'
On another note, I am HYPED for book two! It's going to downright EVIL in some parts, and so much fun to write.
But I'll save my excitement for when I finish this one.
AND HOLY FREAKING CRAP I AM SO EXCITED FOR SEASON TWO AAAAAAHHHH
*eternal screaming*
OH WAIT THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT
Go back to the first couple paragraphs. You know how I was kinda breaking the fourth wall a little bit? Kinda like the Narrator was talking?
It's not the narrator. It's just me being an idiot. Please don't read too much into my mistakes.
Kay?
-Rush💔
Word count: 6723