Shady Hybrids AU

BOOK 3 CH 4: Guilty Party

<Yammy_XOX was slain by Thinknoodles>

<ThnxCya> huh?!

<SB373> WHAAAT

<DanTDM> Excuse me?

I stare at the items on the floor and then at the communicator. Back and forth. Back and forth. The communicator in my hands is wildly pinging. I know it's not Yammy's, when you die it's the one item you keep. I can't bring myself to type, though. I'm in too much shock. But time doesn't stop and the messages keep coming.

<iBalliisticSquid> WooAh WHAT??

<EckoSoldier> YAmmy? You okay?

<iHasCupquake> Justin? What's going on? D:

I bite my lip at the texts in chat. What...just happened? I look around for any clues. What happened when my vision was blurred. How did....

It's then I realise I have blood on my hands and gloves, and a bloodied sword at my feet.

I drop the communicator as I slam my hands over my mouth in sheer horror.

Oh god, what have I done?!

I don't know what came over me. It was that ticking, that horrible ticking- and Yammy not sleeping. Yeah, that was why. And I was trying to teach he-

NO! What am I thinking? That's a stupid reason to kill someone. She hadn't slept, so what? Players don't need to sleep to survive, we've adapted that way.

But at the same time...no, this is stupid! Yet...Justin, what are you doing?

I'm conflicted yet...I still killed her. I still murdered her, whether I think it's justified or not.

I argue with myself for a while until someone knocks at the door. I slowly turn to it and I see Cupquake waving outside. Oh god, I don't wanna hurt her too.

Still, I cautiously walk to the door and open it. It must be early morning cause the sun shines brightly in my face, and it immediately burns me up. I hiss and recoil from the door, blocking my face with my arms.

"Justin? It's just me, Tiff." She says. I realise there's no ticking around her and I soften up slightly. "It's okay, I'm not gonna hurt you." She sounds like she's trying to soothe a hostile creature. Is...that what I am? It feels dehumanizing yet...I can't blame her.

"It's the sun, Tiff, not you." I clarify to her. "It burns."

"Oh, of course." She still sounds sympathetic. "You are a phantom, after all."

"Yeah..." I nod before she steps inside and looks at the bloody mess on the floor. "So..what's this about killing Yammy, then?"

I don't want her to be mad at me. I don't want anyone to be mad at me. Though they probably are.

"I...don't know. There's this ticking noise that plays when I get near people - well around certain people. You haven't got one, neither has James. And it speeds up over time. And Yammy's was really fast and she was yawning and so I asked her if she slept and I don't know she said no and I got up all of a sudden and next thing I know she's dead and I killed her and-"

Cupquake grabs my shoulder, causing me to hiss again. She pats my head though and I look down on her. It feels stupid that I, Thinknoodles, the main admin of this server, has to be restrained and comforted.

"Okay, calm down. Ticking, right?"

"Yeah. It's one of the noises that tick me off, no pun intended. Also alarms and really high pitched laughing make me feel really tense for no reason."
"And that's what caused you to snap on Yammy."